The young Croatian center Ivica Zubac had the best night of his career against Oklahoma City Thunder where his Los Angeles Lakers celebrated 138:128 in extra time. The 21-year-old from Čitluk scored 26 points in the victory with 12/14 shots in play and 12 rebounds - and 16 of those points were achieved in the last quarter and extra time, reports T.portal on January 18, 2019. 

In addition to Zubac, who dominated in the direct duel with New Zealander Steven Adams (17 points and 15 rebounds), the best on the Lakers was Kyle Kuzma with 32 points and Lonzo Ball with 18 points and ten rebounds.

The best Lakers player, LeBron James, who was injured on Christmas, is still not ready to play, though he continues helping from the sideline with advice and support for the young players, including young Zubac.

Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!!!!!!!!! @ivicazubac

— LeBron James (@KingJames) January 18, 2019

Lakers coach Luke Walton commented on Zubac’s game:

“He was powerful in the game and was really good with his soft shot. His teammates were constantly looking for him. When he got the ball near the hoop was very good. But, he's growing and becoming more and more physically powerful. Everyone has made their contribution today. It is difficult to win here, because you’re playing against a team for the playoffs,” said a delighted Walton who has been increasingly using Zubac on the court. Hopefully, his future is guaranteed in Los Angeles. 

We should also mention that Zubac had a net rating of +35 (+/- rating) which, in the history of Lakers, was only done by a handful of players (and only Kobe Bryant is in front of him).

'The whole has been season great. Every time he has a minute, his contributions are huge. Today he got the chance and did not get tired at all. I'm proud of him,” said Zubac’s teammate Lonzo Ball.

In other NBA news, the Indiana Pacers were convincingly defeated by Philadelphia 120:96 at home. From the middle of the second quarter, the Sixers took control of the result and systematically increased their advantage by the end of the game.

Bojan Bogdanović did not have a great night and finished the game with 9 points and 3/11 shots in play. 

Dragan Bender stayed on the bench in the Phoenix loss to Toronto, and in the Washington and New York duel at London's O2 Arena, Mario Hezonja played for 19 minutes, caught six rebounds but missed all four shots.

Ante Žižić was the most effective for his Cleveland Cavaliers who lost to the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City, while Dario Šarič had yet another poor game in the loss of his Minnesota Timberwolves.

Žižić achieved a double-double in 35 minutes, scored 15 points with ten rebounds and had one steal and one block. Šarić played 28 minutes and scored only two points with 1/5 shots in play. He achieved seven rebounds and two steals.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

Bojan Bogdanović and Dario Šarić were again great for their teams last night, though both the Indiana Pacers and Minnesota Timberwolves were unable to pull a victory. The Houston Rockets, on the other hand, have set a new NBA record for the number of three-pointers scored, reports HRT on December 20, 2018. 

The Indiana Pacers played away in Toronto where they lost 99-96 to the Raptors. Fred VanVleet scored 25.9 seconds before the end for the Raptors’ win.

Toronto came back from 17 points behind. The team was led by Kawhi Leonard who scored 28 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and four steals. Pascal Siakam added 17 points with seven rebounds, and Greg Monroe scored 13 points and eight rebounds.

The best for Indiana, who tallied their second defeat in a row, was Victor Oladipo with 20 points, while Bogdanović was the second best with 18 points in 33 minutes on the court (shots in play 7/13, three-pointers 3/6). Bogdanović added five rebounds, an assist and two steals.

The Minnesota Timberwolves were defeated at home 129-123 after the Detroit Pistons won in extra time. The best on the Pistons was Blake Griffin who finished with 34 points, and Reggie Bullock who had 33.

Andre Drummond, who scored 16 points and had the same number of rebounds, took the game to extra time after scoring in the final second of regular time. 

The best for Minnesota was Derrick Rose who scored 33 points and seven assists, while Robert Covington added 22. Dario Šarić, however, was excellent for the Timberwolves, scoring 15 points in 32 minutes on the court (shots in play 6/10, three-pointers 2/5), with six rebounds, two assists and one steal.

Mario Hezonja and Ante Žižić both had time on the court last night, while Dragan Bender did not play for the Phoenix Suns.

The New York Knicks suffered a defeat in Philadelphia, losing 131-110 to the 76ers. Joel Embiid led the 76ers with 24 points and 10 rebounds, which is his 28th double-double this season. Ben Simmons achieved his fourth triple-double with 13 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

Tim Hardaway Jr. was the most effective for New York with 27 points, while Hezonja scored only two from free throws in four minutes on the court.

The Charlotte Hornets were better than Cleveland Cavaliers, winning 110-99 at home. The Hornets were led by Kemba Walker who scored 30 points.

The Cavaliers were led by Jordan Clarkson who scored 20 points, while Ante Žižić scored seven (shots in play 3/4) with four rebounds and two blocks in 16 minutes on the court. 

The Phoenix Suns played away in Boston to win 111-103. Not even Kyrie Irving could help the Celtics, who scored 29 points and ten assists.

The Houston Rockets set a new NBA record last night, according to the number of three-pointers achieved in a single game. In the 136-118 victory over the visiting Washington Wizards, the Rockets achieved 26 three-pointers out of 55 attempts.

James Harden finished the game with 35 points, of which six were three-pointers. Chris Paul scored 21 points with eight assists, and Clint Capel scored 20 points with 12 rebounds. The best for Washington was Bradley Beal with 28 points.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

Ten NBA games were played on Saturday night in the US.

Croatian basketball players had a significant impact on the NBA last night, scoring a collective 58 points! 

The Croatian basketball team gathered in Zagreb on Monday to begin one-month of preparations for the European Championship (EuroBasket). Training began today in Sv. Martin na Muri. 

Last night the NBA played 11 matches and the Croats were in full operation. The title role was the best for Bojan Bogdanović, reports Index.hr on 27 December 2016.