Bashkimi i Prizren has taken the first step towards the title of Kosovo basketball champion.
In the first game of the final playoff series, Bashkimi defeated Trepça. Sunday night’s match at “Sezai Surroi” in Prizren ended with the score 84:77 for the orange team. The match was played without spectators. Bashkimi was sentenced to a match without spectators due to a fight that occurred in the last match with Peja in Prizren.
Despite not having the support of the spectators, Bashkimi dominated against the reigning champion, Trepça. The first quarter belonged to Mitrovica, 18:15. Immediately in the 11th minute, Prizren took the lead 19:18. The second quarter was a strong game, but Bashkimi managed to break away in the last minutes, 38:32.
The third quarter also belonged to the Union, 25:19. In this quarter, the Union's lead was several times 12 points. After 30 minutes of play, the score was 63:51.
At the beginning of the fourth period, the home team had a 14-point lead, 65:51. In the middle of the fourth period, Trepça came within four points, 71:67. But Mack Smith “connected” a few points to restore calm to Bashkimi. Even in the last minute, the Mitrovica team came within five points, but without endangering the home team’s victory.
Smith led Bashkimi with 22 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Wendell Green also had 22 points, while adding two rebounds and two assists. Meanwhile, center Jayveous McKinnis did a great job with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Valon Bunjaku made a valuable contribution with 11 points, three rebounds and four assists, while Lejson Zeiqiri finished the game with nine points.
Trepça's Mikaile Tmushiq stood out with 21 points and four assists. Michael Myers had 10 points, 13 rebounds and four assists. Tekele Cotton scored 18 points, but did not show the form of the semifinals against Prishtina. Drilon Hajrizi scored 11 points.
The second final will take place on Wednesday evening at “Minatori”. This gym is expected to be packed with spectators, just like the gym in Prizren for the third final match. The team that scores four wins is declared the champion. So up to seven matches can be played. The eventual seventh match will take place in Prizren.
Bashkimi finished the regular season in first place, while Trepça in second. Bashkimi eliminated Peja 3:1 in the semifinals, while Trepça beat Sigal Prishtina with the same result.
The team from Prizren is looking for its second title. They won the first one in 2018. Trepça has five titles. Last season, they won the title after a 12-year wait.
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