Red Star rout Bayern 103-73, seven away games next
Red Star beat Bayern by 30 points in Round 9 of the EuroLeague at Belgrade Arena, and seven of their next eight games are away from home.
With seven minutes left, the win was already a celebration, and Belgrade Arena wanted only one thing: a basket from Jonathan Motley. Coach Ibon Navarro gave minutes in the closing stretch to a player whose season has not gone well even by average standards, and Motley dunked for Red Star’s 100th point. The stands erupted.
That is how another good night for Red Star in the EuroLeague ended on Thursday, October 29. The Belgrade side beat Bayern Munich 103-73 (19-15, 29-16, 31-23, 24-19) in Round 9, with Mehdi Difallah, Alberto Baena and Maxim Buber officiating. Red Star now have six wins and three losses, which means that after an 0-2 start they have won six of their last seven games. The first game of the double round, against Maccabi, ended 100-78, so the Arena saw 203 points of Red Star offense in two nights.
How did Red Star break Bayern?
With defense. The visitors scored only 11 points in the first nine minutes, and by halftime Red Star led 48-31, a 17-point cushion. After three quarters it was 79-54, and the game finished at +30. Six players scored ten or more points, and all twelve players on the roster recorded at least two. Red Star also had 29 assists.
After the game, at the press conference, Navarro said something that does not sound like a coach whose team just won by thirty:
“This atmosphere is the biggest threat to us. Whether they praise us or criticize us, we have to stay in our own bubble.”
How did Koloko change the first half?
Center Christian Koloko, a 211-centimeter, 26-year-old Cameroonian, finished with 12 points, two rebounds and five blocks. All of the blocks came in the first half, in about 13 minutes on the floor. He dunked three times early on, and the loudest moment was an alley-oop off an inbounds pass. His mere presence under the basket made Bayern’s players give up on several drives.
Koloko has no grand theory about blocking:
“I think it’s instinct, I think sometimes it’s luck, I think it’s just everything. You just have to read the defense and be there at the right time.”
He said he likes the coach’s style: “I think he knows what he’s doing. It’s always good to play for a coach who knows what he’s doing.” About the atmosphere he said: “It’s an incredible feeling when the whole arena cheers for you and stands on its feet the entire game.” Teammate Nick Weiler-Babb praised him: “He can come out aggressively on a player after a block, get back under the basket and block a shot. That kind of rim protection is exactly what we needed, and it means a lot to us.”
Who else decided the game?
Chima Moneke had 15 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals for a rating of 29. By his own account, he played one of his best games in a Red Star jersey. Tyson Carter scored 14 and hit four of six three-pointers, and Jordan Nwora matched that total. Koloko and Semi Ojeleye had 12 each, and David Kramer finished on 10.
Weiler-Babb scored only two points, but he handed out nine assists and guarded Andreas Obst, one of the best three-point shooters in the EuroLeague. Obst took only four threes in the whole game, none of them from a set position. Weiler-Babb explained what that looked like:
“To keep putting pressure on him, to basically not let him breathe. His biggest strength is that he hits hard shots, exactly the kind that can break you a little. So you have to keep pressuring him constantly.”
For Bayern, Dwayne Washington scored 16 points, Miles Norris had 14 with six rebounds, and Vladimir Lucic added 12 with four rebounds. Washington scored most of his points after the game was already decided.
How was Washington received in Belgrade?
For the former Partizan player, it was his first game against Red Star since leaving the black-and-whites. The reception was what he expected:
“My teammates didn’t know what to expect. I knew the fans surely wouldn’t be on my side. I heard the whistles, some kids showed me the middle finger. That’s what I expected, coming back to Serbia is like coming home. It was good to feel all of that again. It was nice.”
He also had kind words for Red Star when asked how far the team can go: “I’m a Grobar, so I watch Partizan games. I don’t really follow Red Star’s games. But they have a good team.” Then he added: “If they play like this, then the sky is the limit, right?”
What awaits Red Star until mid-December?
Six of the first nine rounds were played in Belgrade, and now it flips. Seven of the next eight games are away:
- November 6, Olympiacos in Athens
- November 12, Real Madrid in Madrid
- November 17, Armani in Milan
- November 20, Barcelona
- November 24, Virtus in Belgrade, the only home game in the run
- December 3, Fenerbahce in Istanbul
- then Valencia away
- December 16, Panathinaikos in Athens
Before that, Red Star host Siroki on Sunday, November 1, at 1 p.m. in the Aleksandar Nikolic Hall, and the trip to Olympiacos on Friday starts at 8:15 p.m.
