NBA team the Indiana Pacers celebrated at home against the Miami Heat 95:88, though what made the Pacers’ victory so special is that Croatian player Bojan Bogdanović was the one to carry them, reports HRT on February 3, 2019.
The 29-year-old from Mostar was the best scorer of the game, nailing 31 points (shots in play 13/19, three-pointers 3/7, free throws 2/2) and even collected seven rebounds, one steal, and one block. The Pacers have thus ended their negative series of four defeats and managed their first win after the All-Star player Victor Oladipo’s season-ending injury. Darren Collison followed Bogdanović on the Pacers with 20 points and six assists.
For the Heat, Hassan Whiteside achieved a double-double, scoring 19 points and 14 rebounds, while Dwyane Wade scored 21 points in 27 minutes.
The Los Angeles Lakers, whose jersey is worn by the young sensation Ivica Zubac, lost to NBA champions the Golden State Warriors 101:115. Our Croatian basketball star spent 26 minutes on the court and managed to score 10 points (shots in play 5/11), nine rebounds, one assist and two blocks.
The Warriors were led by Klay Thompson (28 points), Kevin Durant (21 points, 11 assists) and DeMarcus Cousins (18 points, 10 rebounds). Brandon Ingram scored 20 points for the Lakers and Rajon Rondo scored 12 points with 11 assists.
Ante Žižić put in a modest eight points (shots in play 4/9) with six rebounds in Cleveland’s home defeat to the Dallas Mavericks 98:111. Once again, Slovenian player Luka Dončić was excellent for the Mavericks, scoring 35 points to equal his career record in the NBA league. He also collected 11 rebounds and six assists. The best for the Cavaliers was Jordan Clarkson who scored 19 points.
The Minnesota Timberwolves lost to the Denver Nuggets 106:107, with Dario Šarić only scoring 6 points in 19 minutes on the court. Dragan Bender did not come off the bench for the Suns’ loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
Mario Hezonja scored 10 points (shots in play 4/8, three-pointers 0/4) in the New York Knicks loss to the Boston Celtics. Hezonja also collected three rebounds, and two assists in his 22 minutes on the court.
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