Ilona Burgrová scored a season-high 22 points to lead KP Brno to victory over Žabiny Brno in the regular-season finale. Photo credit: David Titz
Brno, March 21 (BD) — Defending champion Kometa Brno sweep into semifinals; Zbrojovka remains in relegation zone; Primorac has monster game for mmcité+ Brno; Lokomotiva earn a point in restart of women’s football season; and the Brno sports schedule.
The ZBL finished its regular season with a big rivalry game between KP Brno and Žabiny Brno, but the two Brno teams will meet each other up to five more times in the next two weeks in the first round of the women’s basketball playoffs.
First, the regular season ended with KP Brno continuing its recent dominance with a 68-57 victory.
Second, the two teams will play in the best-of-five quarterfinals, starting tonight (Wednesday) at 5:30 p.m. at Hala Vodova. Game 2 is in Žabovřesky at 5 p.m. and Game 3 is back in Kralove Pole on Tuesday. If necessary, Game 4 would be March 29 and Game 5 would be March 31.
If you’re looking for something to do on a cold early-spring weeknight, you could do a lot worse than a rivalry game between two top women’s basketball teams. The teams have met each other often throughout the season and the years. Last year, KP Brno swept Žabiny Brno in the quarterfinals and eventually finished third. Earlier this month, KP Brno beat Žabiny Brno in the semifinals of the Final Four and went on to win the Czech Cup for the first time in club history. KP Brno won both regular-season matchups this year.
Clearly, KP Brno is playing solid basketball. Earlier in the week, the team went to second-place DSK Basketball Nymburk and won, 64-78.
Through the end of the regular season, ZVVZ USK Praha finished 22-0, Nymburk was 18-4 and KP Brno was 17-5. Žabiny Brno finished sixth with a record of 14-8. Technic Brno was last with a record of 2-20.
Technic Brno Drops Into Play Out Bracket
Technic Brno won the first two games of the season and then dropped 20 in a row. They will look to salvage their season in the Play Out Bracket with home and away games against BK Lokomotiva Trutnov (6-16) and the two teams it beat during that early-season run of success: U19 Chance (4 -18) and SBŠ Ostrava (3-19).
First up is U19 Chance. They come to Brno tonight (Wednesday) at 7 p.m. There are roughly two games in each of the next three weeks.
MEN’S HOCKEY
Kometa Fans Ask: Can We Win It All Again?
Hockey fans in Brno celebrated a long-sought-after championship last year and, now, after a four-game sweep of HC Vítkovice Ridera, the faithful are wondering if lightning will strike twice.
Kometa won their 12th title last year and seem to be following the same script during this season: start the season strong, lose intensity during the cold winter months, then get hot in the playoffs.
The next opponent is to be determined. Game 1 of the semifinal series will be either March 29 or 31.
The closest game of this season’s quarterfinal series was the first, when Vítkovice scored with 14 seconds left in regulation to send the game into extra time and Kometa was forced to play 11 extra minutes before logging the 3-2 away win. Game 2 was another 3-2 Kometa win, although without the extra time. At DRFG arena, Brno won Saturday, 4-0, and Sunday, 3-1.
Last year, Kometa was nearly perfect: they swept Sparta in the quarterfinals; they beat Mountfield HK four games to two in the semifinals; and they swept Liberec in the finals. It was a magical month that got better with every exciting game and ended with Kometa’s first title since 1966.
With their four wins this year, Brno is an astounding 16-2 in their past 18 postseason games.
MEN’S FOOTBALL
Zbrojovka Loses at Liberec, Karviná next on March 31
In the swirling snow and the sub-zero temperatures of a Friday night game, Zbrojovka was unable to get its offense in sync and lost to Liberec, 2-0.
HET Liga play takes a short break. It resumes with an important home game against Karviná on Saturday, March 31 at 5 p.m. Karviná is in ninth place, with just one more win and four more points that Brno, showing just how bunched up the bottom half of the league standings are and how valuable a single victory could prove to be in the fight to stay out of the relegation zone.
Slavia Praha comes to Brno on April 7. Slavia is currently second in the league standings.
On April 14, Zbrojovka travels to Slovácko for a traditional rivalry game that could have important considerations for the future of each team.
Zbrojovka is now 15th in the 16-team league with a record of 5-4-12 and 19 points through 21 games.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
mmcité+ Brno Splits Games
Mladen Primorac scored a season-high 30 points to lead mmcité+ Brno over SLUNETA Ústí nad Labem, 78-67, last Wednesday, but a more evenly spread offense was not enough on Saturday as Brno lost 71-82 to BC GEOSAN Kolín.
Primorac, a Croatian center, stands 210 cm tall and weighs 110 kg. Against Ústí nad Labem, he was
11 of 16 from 2-point range and 8 of 9 from the free-throw line for his 30 points.
Against Kolín, four Brno players scored in the low teens behind the team-high 14 points of Aleksandar Radulović. The problem was an old hindrance: the team started poorly and failed to make up the difference.
mmcité+ Brno (8-19) has two more Group A2 home games on each of the following Wednesday nights: NH Ostrava (10-17) tonight at 8 p.m. and USK Praha (12-15) on March 28.
It is mathematically improbable for Brno to finish in the top two of Group A2, so they are likely to move into the Play-Out Bracket in early April. The four teams of the Play-Out Bracket will play home and away games; the last-place team will be forced to defend its right to play next season in the Kooperativa NBL against the top two teams of the lower league.
WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
Lokomotiva Earns a Point in Two Games
Lokomotiva Brno Horni Herspice lost to league-leading SK Slavia Praha, 10-0, in a Wednesday matinee, then hit the road for a scoreless tie at fourth-place FC Viktoria Plzeň on Saturday.
After the first week of the restart of the top women’s football league, Brno (2-2-8, eight points) is in seventh place in the eight-team league, behind fifth-place FC Slovan Liberec (2-3-7, nine points) and sixth-place FK Dukla Praha (2-3-7, nine points).
Lokomotiva Brno H. H. has one game left in the season and it will be a big one. They play at FC Hradec Králové on Satrurday, April 14. Last-place Hradec Králové is 2-1-9 with seven points. The game will likely play a big role in deciding which team will be relegated to a lower league.
Despite being shut out in both games this spring, the Brno offense has scored 14 goals this season, more than all but the top three teams in the league.
BRNO SPORTS RESULTS
Quick results for various Brno professional and recreational sports for the past week. Home team listed first (when applicable).
Wednesday, March 14, 2018
— Women’s Basketball: Technic Brno 48, ZVVZ USK Praha 127
— Men’s Basketball: mmcité+ Brno 78, SLUNETA Ústí nad Labem 67
— Men’s Hockey, Quarterfinal Game 2: Vítkovice 2, Kometa 3
— Women’s Football: Lokomotiva Brno H. H. 0, SK Slavia Praha 10
Thursday, March 15, 2018
— Women’s Basketball: DSK Basketball Nymburk 64, KP Brno 78
Friday, March 16, 2018
— Men’s Football: Liberec 2, Zbrojovka Brno 0
Saturday, March 17, 2018
— Women’s Football: FC Viktoria Plzeň 0, Lokomotiva Brno H. H. 0
— Women’s Basketball: KP Brno 68, Žabiny Brno 57
— Women’s Basketball: BA K. Vary 100, Technic Brno 73
— Men’s Basketball: mmcité+ Brno 71, GEOSAN Kolín 82
— Men’s Hockey, Quarterfinal Game 3: Kometa 4, Vítkovice 0
Sunday, March 18, 2018
— Men’s Hockey, Quarterfinal Game 4: Kometa 3, Vítkovice 1
BRNO SPORTS SCHEDULE
The schedule for various Brno professional and recreational sports for the next two weeks. All dates and times subject to change. Home team listed first (when applicable).
Wednesday, March 21, 2018
— Women’s Basketball, Quarterfinal Game 1: KP Brno X Žabiny Brno, 5:30 p.m.
— Men’s Basketball: mmcité+ Brno X NH Ostrava, 8 p.m.
— Women’s Basketball: Technic Brno X U19 Chance, 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 24, 2018
— Men’s Basketball: Fio banka J. Hradec X mmcité+ Brno, 6 p.m.
— Women’s Basketball, Quarterfinal Game 2: Žabiny Brno X KP Brno, 5 p.m.
Sunday, March 25, 2018
— Running: BBP 10 – Brněnská přehrada
— Women’s Basketball: Loko Trutnov X Technic Brno, 5 p.m.
——————————————————————————-
Tuesday, March 27, 2018
— Women’s Basketball: SBŠ Ostrava X Technic Brno, 7:15 p.m.
— Women’s Basketball, Quarterfinal Game 3: KP Brno X Žabiny Brno, TBD
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
— Men’s Basketball: mmcité+ Brno X USK Praha, 8 p.m.
Thursday, March 29, 2018
— Women’s Basketball, Quarterfinal Game 4 (if necessary): Žabiny Brno X KP Brno, TBD
Friday, March 30, 2018
— Baseball: Draci Brno X Olympia Blansko, MBS, 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 31, 2018
— Men’s Football: Zbrojovka Brno X Karviná , 3 p.m.
— Men’s Basketball: SLUNETA Ústí nad Labem X mmcité+ Brno, 6 p.m.
— Baseball: Cardion Hroši Brno X Technika Brno, 2 p.m.
— Baseball: Olympia Blansko X Draci Brno, 6 p.m.
— Women’s Basketball, Quarterfinal Game 5 (if necessary): KP Brno X Žabiny Brno, TBD
Sunday, April 1, 2018
— Baseball: Technika Brno X Cardion Hroši Brno, 2 p.m.
The Brno Sports Report is published every Wednesday. All dates and times are subject to change. Most of the stories are about the traditional “English-speaking” team sports — football, hockey, baseball, basketball, American football, rugby, etc. — but it is also about the interesting local spectator and participation sports — tennis, badminton, running, horse racing, swimming, rock climbing, biking, etc. If you have any suggestions for what should be included, please comment below or send an email to brnosports@gmail.com.
Get the news first! Subscribe to our daily newsletter here. Top stories of the day in your mailbox every morning.
