Partizan didn't need a single player to take over against Maccabi Tel Aviv. They needed everyone to keep the ball moving. Friday's 88–67 EuroLeague win in Belgrade was built on 27 assists, just seven turnovers and a balanced scoring effort that left Maccabi chasing for most of the night.
The scoreboard tells part of the story: Partizan led 28–23 after one quarter, then held Maccabi to 12 points in the second to reach half-time 50–35 ahead. Another 22–17 quarter stretched the margin to 20 entering the last period. It wasn't a late escape or a shooting spree that arrived out of nowhere. Partizan steadily made each possession harder for the visitors and kept finding the next pass in attack.
Ethan Thompson led Partizan with 16 points, hitting five of nine three-point attempts and adding four assists. Lamar Stevens gave them 14 points, eight rebounds and three blocks, while Antonio Reeves contributed 13 points. Those contributions mattered because Maccabi couldn't simply load up on one scorer. Partizan's scoring came from several spots, and the ball rarely got stuck in one pair of hands.
Carlik Jones scored only seven points, but his seven assists and zero turnovers were arguably more revealing than his shooting line. Alessandro Pajola added five assists without a turnover. Together, they gave Partizan 12 assists and no giveaways from two key ball-handlers. That's the sort of guard play that can make an offence look comfortable even when its leading creator isn't piling up points. The game box score shows how widely the playmaking was shared.
Partizan finished with 14 made threes on 33 attempts, compared with Maccabi's five on 23. That nine-triple gap alone represented 27 points, larger than the final 21-point margin. It wasn't simply a matter of volume: Thompson's five makes gave the hosts a reliable perimeter outlet, while their passing helped keep the defence moving. Maccabi won the rebound count 34–32, but couldn't turn that modest advantage into enough clean scoring opportunities.
The other decisive number was the turnover count. Partizan coughed the ball up seven times; Maccabi committed 13. In a game where the visitors were already struggling to match the hosts' outside shooting, those extra lost possessions compounded the damage. Partizan could afford a relatively quiet final quarter because they'd already controlled the middle two periods and protected their advantage.
The result lifted Partizan to 5–5 through ten EuroLeague games, while Maccabi slipped to 2–8. That matters beyond one Friday result. Partizan's route back towards a winning record looks much more convincing when their guards are creating for teammates without donating possessions. Maccabi, meanwhile, can't afford to lose the perimeter battle this badly and expect its rebounding to rescue the night. The detailed statistical record captures both the efficiency gap and the different contributions across Partizan's rotation.
Partizan's next challenge is to make this ball movement a habit rather than a one-night flourish. Against Maccabi, the combination was clear: quick decisions, accurate perimeter shooting and enough defensive resistance to turn an early advantage into a comfortable win. There wasn't much mystery about why it worked — and that's precisely what made it effective.
Comments