Cedevita Olimpija snags 5th straight Slovenian title

Cedevita Olimpija have claimed their fifth straight national basketball championship title, having won three out of four games against Krka in the final series of the OTP Banka League.

This is the 22nd national championship title for the Ljubljana club since Slovenia became independent in 1991, and the 13th straight title in the Basketball Federation of Slovenia competitions, CE Report quotes The Slovenia Times.

They have gone unbeaten in the finals since February 2020, when they lost to Koper Primorska in the Spar Cup final, and the last title to slip through their fingers was the 2021 Cup, where they lost to Krka in the semi-finals.

The club as it is known today emerged through the 2019 merger between Petrol Olimpija and the Croatian club Cedevita, but remains based in Ljubljana and successor to the most successful Slovenian club.

By beating Krka, the club from the southeastern city of Novo Mesto, 72:65 in the fourth matchup in the finals in Stožice Arena on 9 June, Cedevita Olimpija notched up their fourth consecutive triple crown in the national competitions. They claimed the Supercup in September 2024 and the Spar Cup in February 2025.

No lustre in the finals

Olimpija did not put up an impressive performance in the final series, and the players appeared to be getting tired after a long season.

Although they beat the favoured team only once in eight games this season, Krka had a good chance to notch up a second win in the finals after beating the Ljubljana team 88:81 at home on 7 June.

This was despite them having been unable to count on point guard Tayler Persons in the final series due to an injury.

Meanwhile, Olimpija were unable to use all their players as the rule is that only four foreigners can play in the national championship. They managed to pull together only in the second half to clinch the title they had all but taken for granted.

They broke into the lead with a 14:2 split at the start of the third quarter (47:40), and in a chess-like low-scoring finish they held off the away team's attempts to score.

They went into the last four minutes with a 64:57 lead. Krka then came close at 66:63 but their last attempt was crushed by the MVP of the final series, Aleksej Nikolić, who scored a three-pointer and three free throws.

Nikolić scored a total of 14 points, Brynton Lemar 16 and and Danilo Tasić added 11. Niko Bačvić was again Krka's top scorer with 17 points, while Jan Špan and Miha Cerkvenik scored just six points between them, shooting 0:11 from three-point range.

Good season on the whole

Commenting on the match, Cedevita Olimpija captain Jaka Blažič said their side showed more energy and fighting spirit in the second half and deserved to get the desired win.

"I can say the season as a whole has been a success, but not a great one, because we ran out of steam in some key games. The defeats to the Turks in the FIBA Europe Cup and to Dubai in the ABA League hurt in particular," he said.

Krka have won seven national championship titles, the last one in 2014, and their most recent cup title in 2021. Their coach Dejan Jakara is happy with the season.

"We've kept our place in the ABA League, played in the finals of the Spar Cup and the OTP Banka League, and thus justified the second highest budget among clubs in Slovenia. Cedevita Olimpija were at a higher level this season than in previous years, so they deservedly won all the titles."