Donar cracks the Yoast United code and wins big against teenagers from Gelderland

It took a while on Saturday evening before Donar had cracked the code that allowed it to adequately combat Yoast United. Landstede Hammers had already been successful with their zone defense against the Groningers a few weeks ago and Yoast United had done their homework well. The Gelderland team copied that way of playing and Donar hardly knew what to do with the last team in the BNXT League for a quarter and a half.

Early deficit

The guests also started the game well offensively and Donar soon found themselves trailing 8-17. Thanks to John Meeks and Justinas Ramanauskas, the first quarter ended with a minimal lead for the home team: 20-19.

In the second quarter it was initially a matter of exchange, but halfway through Donar understood better and better what it had to do to hurt Yoast United. The passing pace was increased and the Groningers increasingly found the free man behind the three-point line. Towards the end of the second quarter, three-pointers from Meeks, Ramanauskas and Karolis Babusis started raining. Donar thus created the decisive gap. With a score of 49-36, the teams headed to the locker rooms.

Teenagers on the parquet

After the break, Donar no longer had any trouble with the opponent, who continued with their now well-understood tactics. There was no other option for Yoast United, because the small bench and therefore the limited substitution options did not make another, more intensive way of playing possible.

The fact that Yoast United has a narrow selection became apparent in the last quarter. The match had already been decided in Groningen’s favor for a long time and the guests gave their benchers some playing minutes. 15-year-old Tobias Molenaar and 16-year-old Marko Saveljic were given playing time by their coach Jeroen van Vugt. The teenagers defended themselves bravely, but could not prevent Donar from winning 82-54.

The Gelderland coach has had a difficult start with his team. The fourth defeat in as many matches was suffered against Donar. “Those young boys are taking advantage of the situation,” said Van der Vugt. “But we also want to give them a chance. We can’t just attract a bunch of new players. We don’t have the financial resources for that.”

Good lesson

Andrej Stimac was of course delighted with the victory. Donar’s coach started his match analysis with a compliment to the opponent. “The Yoast United players started the match like warriors with a plan. We couldn’t find the shots in their zone defense. But during the match we were able to increase the intensity through our rotation. The moment we knew how to deal with the situation turned out to be the key moment for victory.”

Stimac hopes that the game against Yoast United has been a good lesson for his team. “If the players know what they have to do, but even more importantly: if they know what they cannot and should not do – that is the greatest quality of a player, knowing what you cannot do – we can use our potential even more. Today we showed that. It’s another step in the right direction.”