Croatian basketball jewels: Dario Saric & Bojan Bogdanovic (photo by CroHoops.com)
With Zagreb CO awaiting potential acquisition of Sean May, C Mario Kasun displayed his top form while scoring as much as 35 points (24 at the halftime) vs Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahce in a friendly game which was played in the old Zagreb CO basketball hall Trnsko.
Zagreb CO European phenom Dario Saric finally got real minutes on the small forward position. Zagreb CO definitely played with more energy and passion when Saric was on the floor.
He held his own vs Bogdanovic defensively, collected a couple of boards, moved well in transition and had a couple of great assists to the wide open teammates underneath the basket.
If he continues to play and develop his performance, like he did tonight, he could become one of the most pleasant surprise stories of the upcoming Euroleague season.
Josh Heytvelt (19 points) provided some late game heroics for the host team with the huge three-pointer from 10 meters/30.5 feet distance. But he was not able to convert the additional free throw and his potential game tying lay-up has been proclaimed to be late by referee crew.
2011 Nets draftee Bojan Bogdanovic had as much as 28 points for Fenerbahce, while SF Emir Prelidzic hit all four of his free throw attempts in the last 2 minutes to secure the outcome.
This game was a clear strengths/weaknesses indicator for Zagreb CO strategist Ivica Buric and provided a huge confidence boost for his squad prior to the start of their Euroleague campaign.
