There were no surprises in the first matches of the semifinals of the Serbian League playoffs.
Radnicki and Novi Beograd are now just one victory away from the final. Both teams saved enough energy for domestic challenges after exhausting games and important wins on the European stage earlier this week.
Radnicki defeated Crvena Zvezda 15:12 in Kragujevac, while Novi Beograd beat Sabac 16:11 in Belgrade.
Radnicki played without a few key players (goalkeeper Filipovic, Murisic and Dadvani) against Crvena Zvezda, which took a flying start. Crvena Zvezda led 3:0 after the first quarter. It served as a wake-up call for Radnicki. The hosts responded well after the first break and improved their play, launching a 7:1 run to take a 7:4 lead at halftime. In the second half, the home team widened the gap to five goals (13:8) with five and a half minutes left in the game. The visitors managed to reduce the deficit by the end. Radnicki’s Lazar Vickovic was the only player who scored more than two goals. He found the net three times. Stanojevic, Jankovic, Gavrilovic Vapenski (all Radnicki), Radanovic, Vukicevic, Seman, Sulca, and Banicevic (Crvena Zvezda) scored two each.
Novi Beograd hosted Sabac. The visitors offered strong resistance in the first half. Deep into the second period, Sabac was in front, 5:4. Still, Novi Beograd regained the lead before the middle break, 6:5. The favorite controlled the match in
the second half and recorded a 16:11 victory with four goals from Vasilije Martinovic. Milos Cuk and Nikola Lukic scored three, as did Sabac’s Luka Plevancic and Andrej Barac.
2025 Serbian League, playoffs, semifinals, 1st games
1st – 4th place (best of three)
Novi Beograd – Sabac 16:11 (3:2, 3:3, 5:3, 5:3)
Radnicki – Crvena Zvezda 15:12 (0:3, 7:1, 3:3, 5:5)
5th – 8th place (best of three)
Stari Grad – Partizan 9:10 (2:3, 3:2, 1:3, 3:2)
Valis – NBG Vukovi 16:11 (4:4, 3:4, 2:1, 7:2)
