Zadar's basketball players were defeated on the road in Vienna by Vienna 78-63 in the 4th round of ABA Liga (Adriatic League) group B. Zadar played weakened, without Vladimir Mihailović and Ivan Vraneš, while Vienna secured their first win after two opening losses.
The top scorer for the winning team was Grant Sherfield with 17 points, while Rodney Gunn added 14. Krešimir Radovčić contributed nine points and dished out seven assists, the most on his team. For Zadar, Lovro Buljević led the scorers with 15 points and five rebounds, Dario Drežnjak scored 12 points with four rebounds, and Krševan Klarica added 11 points.
Zadar spent seven minutes in scoring tie, even holding the lead at times. They led 3:9, and their biggest advantage came in the third minute when it was 9:3, a six-point lead. Sherfield scored eight of the home side's first 11 points, and after Klarica's three-pointer for 15:18, Zadar entered their first major crisis in offensive execution. The home team first took the lead in the eighth minute (19:18), then turned it to 22:18. Langović scored from close range three times straightforwardly, and the hosts went up by 10 (38:28). A five-minute stretch of scoring drought in open-field shooting was broken by Drežnjak's three-pointer, and the 40:34 deficit was not a bad result at halftime.
Vienna reached leads of 14 points on several occasions. After 30 minutes of play, Zadar had 10 fewer rebounds, only about 20 per cent success from three-point range, and seven missed free throws. The third quarter brought the hosts a 61:48 advantage, and Zadar never managed to get within 12 points at any point. From the 27th minute to the end, Vienna's lead was consistently double-digit, and Šare committed a fifth disqualifying foul.
Zadar coach Stipe Modrić said the Viennese were better throughout the match. He noted that his players shot 18 per cent from three-point range and scored 63 points in total. He also said they were without Mihailović and Vraneš, who came with the team but could not play. "I'm not looking for excuses, but that's a big minus for us," said Modrić, adding that they couldn't find available players who could match the opponent's game.
Zadar and Vienna now have 1-2 records and sit in fourth and fifth place. On the same day, Zagreb's Cibona also suffered its third consecutive loss, defeated by Čačak's Borac at Dražen's House 95-94. Cibona had a chance to win but failed to convert, leaving them with a 0-3 record as the worst team in group A.
