CSKA Moscow left Paris with some pride in tack, as they needed overtime to see off Partizan, 90-88, in a thrilling 3rd/4th place game in Paris.
Veteran, J.R. Holden hit a game-winning triple with 2.9 seconds left in overtime to grab victory for the Russians. Partizan’s Bo McCalebb had a chance to win it for his side, but was short with his three-pointer.
Moscow’s Trajan Langdon netted 32 points, playing all 45 minutes, and with that, a +37 rating. Lawrence Roberts got 16 points in vain for the Serbian powerhouses.
Partizan forced overtime for the second time in this Final Four weekend thanks to a McCalebb lay-up in traffic – levelling the contest at 78. He couldn’t repeat his heroics in overtime and Partizan left Paris losing both their games.
The game started at a frantic pace with CSKA racing away to a 19-8 lead [9-0 run]. Which was snapped by young Czech, Jan Vesely and threes from Roberts and Aleksandar Rasic cut the deficit further to five at the end of the first quarter [20-25].
CSKA kept Partizan at bay for most of the second period, but constant three-pointers for the Serbians kept them in touch at the end of the half [ 44-47].
Both teams traded baskets for most of the third stanza, but Partizan’s persistence mixed with CSKA’s failure to convert open shots, gave Partizan the lead at the end of the third [62-61] .
The fourth saw a scrappy affair, with neither team really firing on all cylinders, but once McCalebb layed the ball home – it set up an grandstand finish in overtime.
John Hobbs for talkbasket.net – in Paris.
