Marinovic leads Steaua past Buducnost

Steaua CSM EximBank Bucharest grabbed its second win in Group D by edging Buducnost VOLI Podgorica 81-75 in the Romanian capital on Wednesday. Steaua and Buducnost join Banvit Bandirma in a three-way tie for fourth place, each with a 2-3 record. Marko Marinovic led the winners with 18 points. Bill Amis added 15, Pankracije Barac had 11 while Aleksandar Rasic got 10 for Steaua. Tadija Dragicevic led Buducnost with 20 points. Omar Cook and Devoe Joseph each had 14 for Buducnost. Cook added 11 assists for a double-double. Buducnost had a strong start but a Marinovic and Rasic hit three-pointer in a 10-0 run which allowed Steaua to get a 19-12 lead after 10 minutes. Steaua improved its defense in the second quarter, as Rasic and Amis allowed the hosts to get a 14-point lead, 41-27, at halftime. Buducnost found new go-to guys in Cook and Joseph after the break and a jumper by Vasilije Bocovic gave the guests their first lead since the opening minutes, 53-54. A three-pointer by Dragicevic tied it at 63-63, but Rasic and Marinovic stepped up big in crunch time to make Steaua seal the outcome, 74-66, in the next-to-last minute.

Gerald Lee and Dragicevic exchanged early baskets to get their teams going and a free throw by Aleks Maric gave Buducnost a 2-3 lead. Dragicevic scored again and Aleksa Ilic added a layup for a 2-7 Buducnost edge. Amis made foul shots, Dragicevic rolled off a high post pick for a layup but Lee kept Steaua within 6-9. Rasic and Marinovic struck from downtown and a jumper by Amis gave the hosts a 14-9 lead, after a 10-0 run. Dragicevic kept pacing Buducnost with a put-back layup which Barac bettered with a triple and a mid-range jumper to boost the hosts' lead to 19-12 after 10 minutes. Barac kept pacing Steaua early in the second quarter and Titus Nicoara soon made it a double-digit game, 23-12. Bojan Subotic tried to change things for Buducnost but Rasic bettered that with a triple and a put-back layup by Ionut Dragusin made the guests call timeout at 28-14. Joseph struck from downtown and Omar Cook added back-to-back triples to give Buducnost hope at 30-23. Marinovic and Nicoara combined for all points in a 7-0 Steaua run and Chris Cooper soon gave the hosts a 12-point margin 39-27. Maric hit foul shots but an unstoppable Amis gave Steaua a 41-27 margin at the break.

Buducnost improved its defense after the break while Nemanja Jaramaz and Joseph brought the guests within 43-33. Barac scored again and Dragusin soon restored a 47-33 Steaua lead. Joseph kept leading Buducnost and a three-point play by Dragicevic made it an eight-point game, 49-41. Dragicevic and Joseph struck from downtown in an 0-8 run that brought the guests back to life, 51-49. Nicoara stepped up for Steaua but Cook answered from downtown and a jumper by Bocovic completed the guests' comeback, 53-54. Marinovic stepped up with a driving layup and levente Szijarto added a corner triple to restore a 58-54 Steaua lead after 30 minutes. Nicoara hit a jumper early in the fourth quarter and Amis struck from downtown to make Buducnost call timeout at 63-55. Cook banked in a stop-and-pop three-pointer, igniting an 8-0 run in which Dragicevic also hit one from beyond the arc for a 63-63 tie. Denis Ikovlev made free throws and Rasic hit a triple for a 68-63 score with 4 minutes left. Dragicevic scored again but Marinovic hit foul shots and added an off-balance three-pointer that boosted the hosts' lead to 73-65. Maric and Jaramaz brought Buducnost within 76-72 with a minute left but a layup by Lee sealed the outcome.