Dubai Basketball head coach Jurica Golemac looked on the bright side after his team saw their perfect start to the 2024-2025 ABA League season come to an end following an agonising 80-83 defeat to Serbia’s Mega MIS on Saturday night – in a game that was watched by NBA and global basketball royalty.
Both sides went into the Round 3 game with an unbeaten 2-0 record, and it was Mega MIS who maintained their flawless start to the season with a closely-fought victory in front of almost 4,000 vociferous fans at Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai.
Among the stars sitting at courtside were Denver Nuggets’ stars, three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, a 2023 Finals champion and MVP, and 7-time NBA All-Star and Vlatko Čančar, who both played for Mega MIS, as well as Dario Šarić.
They were joined by Denver Nuggets’ owners Stanley Kroenke and Josh Kroenke, former EuroLeague President, Jordi Bartomeu, NBL owner, Larry Kestelman, owner BeoBasket,Miško Ražnatović,VTB League President, Serhiy Kurchenko, and owner of Gigantes Spanish basketball newspaper, Jose Luis Ortiz.
The fans were treated to a thrilling game which was decided in the last second, on a controversial foul call against Awudu Abass that brought Mega MIS’ Kosta Kondić to the free throw line — scoring three consecutive to seal his team’s victory.
Earlier, the hosts made a strong start to the game, buoyed by terrific home support. Leon Radosevic’s
Three-pointer was among the highlights that saw Dubai Basketball take a 24-18 advantage at the end of the first quarter. By the end of the second quarter Mega MIS had found their rhythm, but Dubai Basketball’s intensity saw them rewarded with a 45-36 advantage going into half-time.
The third quarter was closely-fought as Mega MIS closed the gap to just three points at 63-60, setting things up for an enthralling final 10 minutes.
With the scores tied at 77-all, Kosta Kondić hit a huge 3-pointer for Mega MIS to give his team a three-point lead going into the final minute. However, Dubai had their answer ready as Danilo Anđušić drove through the lane for a tough-fought 2, and was fouled in the process — making the free throw to complete tie the game at 80-80.
As the clock went below five seconds, with Dubai Basketball’s defence pressuring, Kondic’s 3-point attempt was off the mark — but a foul was called, sending him to the line for 3, with the entire game in the balance. Kondic kept his cool despite the loud Dubai crowd, draining all three shots from the line, and finishing the game’s joint-top scorer with Filip Jovic (16 pts).
For Dubai Basketball, the USA’s Isaiah Taylor scored a game-high 14, and also grabbed five rebounds while captain Klemen Prepelic continued his impressive form with 13 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists.
Golemac was proud of his team and said there are positives to take from the defeat.
“We couldn’t catch the rhythm and break the game. We were up most of the game. But we never got through and Mega played extremely energetically and extremely quick. I would say at crucial moments we missed a couple of lay-ups and we let them shoot open shots on the end,” he said.
“The season is a marathon and not a sprint, but we need to learn from the mistakes. From the defeats – we are learning. Defeats make you learn; defeats make you work harder. In the wins, not everything is perfect, and in the defeats not everything is bad.”
Prior to the game, fans were treated to an explosive pre-game show as UAE’s Sharmila Dance Center, led by the legendary Sharmila Kamte, who wowed the crowd with their electrifying dance moves. The excitement soared even higher at half-time when Slovenia’s Dunking Devils stormed the court, delivering a mind-blowing performance of gravity-defying dunks and acrobatic basketball tricks that had fans on their feet.
Dubai Basketball will next be in action on October 13 when they travel to Serbia to take on Borac Mozzart. They will then return to Coca-Cola Arena for the home game against Spartak Subotica on October 20.
