Olimpija uses big comeback to rally past Olaj

Union Olimpija Ljubljana rallied from a 13-point deficit in the final 7 minutes to edge Szolnoki Olaj 80-86 in Hungary on Wednesday. Olimpija improved to 2-1 and ties for first place with Khimki Moscow Region and Besiktas Integral Forex Istanbul. Olaj joins Zenit St. Petersburg and VEF Riga in a three-way tie for fourth place, all with a 1-2 record. Alen Omic led the winners with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Sasu Salin added 16 points while Gregor Hrovat, Halil Kanacevic and Marko Marinovic each had 12 for Olimpija. Strahinja Milosevic led Olaj with 16 points. Peter Lorant added 14, Lazeric Jones and David Vojvoda each had 13 while Akos Keller got 11 for the hosts, which led 48-42 at halftime and boosted their margin to 70-58 after 30 minutes. Three-pointers by Luka Rupnik and Hrovat brought Olimpija back to life but Olaj still led 80-79 in the next-to-last minute. Rupnik hit the go-ahead shot and Omic sealed the outcome with a close basket, allowing Olimpija to celebrate a big road win.

Both teams started the game at full speed, as a three-point play by Milosevic gave Olaj a 7-6 edge after 2 minutes. Milosevic and Jones soon fueled an 8-0 run which boosted the hosts' lead to 17-11. Salin answered with 6 quick points and got help from Marinovic and Omic to tie the game, 23-23. A jumper by Vojvoda and a buzzer-beating triple by Lorant restored a 28-25 Olaj lead after 10 minutes. Omic scored again early in the second quarter while Salin followed a layup with a three-pointer to give Olimpija a 32-35 edge. Keller had 4 points in an 8-0 run which put Olaj back ahead, 40-35. Omic scored again and a three-pointer by Paolo Marinelli tied the game again, 40-40. Stefan Sinovec and Vojvoda stepped up late in the first half to give Olaj a 48-42 margin at the break. Hristo Nikolov and Blaz Mahkovic stepped up after the break but Jones kept Olaj way ahead, 54-46. Marinovic sank a triple but back-to-back baskets by Lorant made Olimpija call timeout at 58-49. Keller kept pacing Olaj, as he followed a dunk with a jumper to make it a double-digit game, 66-56. Free throws by Krisztian Wittmann and Milosevic made it a 12-point game, 70-58, after 30 minutes. Lorant scored again and Milosevic dunked by Kanacevic kept Olimpija within 74-63. Hrovat struck twice from downtown, however, and Rupnik added his own three-pointer to bring Olimpija back to life, 76-73. Milosevic hit a jumper but Omic and Salin brought Olimpija as close as 80-79. Rupnik buried the go-ahead triple, 80-82, with a minute left. Jones missed from downtown and layup by Omic allowed Olimpija to celebrate a big road win in come-from-behind fashion!