Jack Animam was not fielded by Radnicki during her 23rd birthday.
Without Animam, Radnicki’s late rally fell short against Partizan 1953 in the 2021-22 First Women’s Basketball League of Serbia season, suffering a 69-64 loss, Sunday morning (Manila time) at the Hala Sportova.
Animam, who just turned 23, was averaging 20.0 points and 14.3 rebounds prior to this game.
Still, Radnicki put up a spirited fight against Partizan.
Down by as much as 15 points, 60-45, early in the final frame, Radnicki put the clamps on Partizan.
With 4:14 left, a layup by Danijela Dimitrijević cut the lead down to five, 62-57, to cap a 12-2 spurt.
Gorana Marjanović nailed a timely triple to stop Partizan’s bleeding.
Though Milica Inđić and the debuting Tijana Jelić tried to put up one last rally, Partizan’s steady shooting from the stripe led to the victory.
Sofija Olić led Partizan with 24 points while Anđela Gligić and Jovana Boričić had 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Partizan went up to 7-2 while dropping Radnicki to 4-5.
Jelic was sensational in her debut, dropping 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting while Indic had 16 points, eight rebounds, and five assists.
Radnicki will next face Radivoj Korać on December 4.
