Buducnost uses great defense to down Unics

Buducnost VOLI Podgorica survived a tough test in Group D by edging Unics Kazan 73-63 in the Montenegrin capital on Wednesday. Both teams are now tied in Group D, each with a 2-2 record, one win away from Aris Thessaloniki and Trabzonspor Medical Park, first at 3-1 apiece. Suad Sehovic led the winners with 16 points. Tadija Dragicevic added 13 while Aleks Maric had 10 for Buducnost. Keith Langford led Unics with 20 points. Latavious Williams added 11 while Artsiom Parakhouski had 10 for the guests, who used a strong start to keep a 15-19 lead late in the first quarter. Maric and Nemanja Jamaraz combined for 9 points in an 11-0 run which boosted the hosts' lead to 28-20. Unics managed to tie the game for the last time behind an unstoppable Parakhouski but Buducnost claimed a 37-32 edge at halftime and extended it to 60-50 after 30 minutes. Nothing changed from that moment, as Buducnost kept the lead throughout the fourth quarter and cruised to a well-deserved win.

Parakhouski got Unics going with a put-back layup which Langford followed with a turnaround jumper for a 2-4 lead. Valeri Likhodey found his first points, Maric scored in the paint but a three-pointer by Kostas Kaimakoglou and a six-meter jumper by Langford made Buducnost call timeout at 4-11. Dragicevic rescued the hosts with a triple which Maric followed with a layup for a 9-11 score. Langford nailed a three-pointer and Kaimakoglou erased Suad Sehovic's layup with a six-meter jumper. Latavious Williams and Maric exchanged layups, Quino Colom split free throws and a layup by Sead Sehovic kept Buducnost within 15-19. Dragicevic buried a corner jumper and Robert Rikic added a layup to keep Buducnost within 19-20 after 10 minutes. Buducnost held Unics scoreless for almost 5 minutes, while Maric and Jamaraz combined for 9 points to boost the hosts' lead to 28-20, after an 11-0 run. Parakhouski had 6 points in a 0-8 Unics run which tied the game again, 28-28, but Suad Sehovic, Rikic and Dragicevic stepped up to restore a 34-30 Buducnost lead. Free throws by Dragicevic, Langford and Rikic fixed the halftime score at 37-32.

Langford scored again right after the break and a three-pointer by Devoe Joseph gave the hosts a 40-34 margin. Parakhouski and Langford kept pacing Unics but another triple by Suad Sehovic gave his team a 43-38 margin. Williams and Kaimakoglou brought Unics within 43-42 but Suad Sehovic insisted from downtown. Williams hit free throws but the Sehovic brothers had 5 points in a 7-0 run that boosted Buducnost's margin to 53-44. Langford hit foul shots but a three-pointer by Vasilije Bacovic made it a double-digit game, 56-46. Williams scored again and Petr Gubanov hit free throws but Rikic and Joseph gave the hosts a 60-50 margin after 30 minutes. An outstanding slam by Williams made the hosts call timeout, 60-54, early in the fourth quarter. Arturas Milaknis and Suad Sehovic exchanged three-pointers and a layup by Likhodey gave Unics hope at 63-59. Bojan Subotic scored down low and free throws by Dragicevic gave Buducnost a 67-59 margin. Langford hit a jumper but he didn't find much help around. Meanwhile, another layup by Dragicevic sealed the outcome, 69-61, as Unics never recovered.