BELGRADE, Feb 27 (Reuters) – Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb took a big step towards an eighth successive league title with a 2-1 win at rivals Hajduk Split on Wednesday while Red Star Belgrade closed in on front-runners Partizan in Serbia.

There was joy for talents in both former Yugoslav countries as Dinamo’s teenage defender Tin Jedvaj shone throughout the absorbing contest and Red Star’s 19-year old midfielder Vukan Savicevic scored his first goal for the 1991 European Cup winners.

BELGRADE, Feb 25 (Reuters) – The bitter memories of Balkan conflicts that tore the former Yugoslavia apart should take a back seat to football when Serbia visit Croatia in next month’s World Cup qualifier in Zagreb, Serbia coach Sinisa Mihajlovic said on Monday.

The 44-year-old former international, who won the European Cup with Red Star Belgrade in 1991 shortly before Yugoslavia’s violent break-up, also warned those Serbian players about the pressures of facing Croatia.

BELGRADE (Reuters) – Former Los Angeles Lakers guard Jordan Farmar showed the benefits of his extensive NBA experience by giving Anadolu Efes Istanbul a thrilling 63-60 Euroleague win over the competition’s six-time winners CSKA Moscow on Friday.

The result kept Efes joint top of their eight-team pool in the second group stage with a 7-1 record alongside Real Madrid, after the winners of eight titles in Europe’s premier club competition ground out a 77-72 home victory against Alba Berlin.

BELGRADE (Reuters) – The princes and paupers of Europe’s premier club basketball competition celebrated wins in the latest round of matches with Khimki Moscow stealing the show from more illustrious and wealthier city rivals CSKA on Friday.

Both teams moved a step closer to the playoffs after Khimki ended a week-long strike over unpaid wages with an 88-67 home whitewash of quadruple Euroleague winners Maccabi Tel Aviv while CSKA enjoyed an 87-73 away rout of Lithuanians Zalgiris Kaunas.

BELGRADE (Reuters) – A blistering individual performance by Euroleague’s top scorer Bobby Brown gave Montepaschi Siena a 98-92 win at Fenerbahce Istanbul on Friday while several big guns were rocked by surprise defeats in the second round of the top 16.

Khimki Moscow stunned 2010 champions Barcelona 78-65, six-time winners Panathinaikos Athens went down 78-64 at Anadolu Efes Istanbul and Maccabi Tel Aviv, the winners of four titles, were edged 71-70 at home by a rejuvenated Caja Laboral Vitoria.

BELGRADE (Reuters) – Four wins out of four by Spanish clubs in the opening round of the Euroleague’s marathon second group stage came as icing on the Christmas cake for the country’s basketball fans.

CSKA Moscow, six-time winners of Europe’s premier club competition, impressed with a 90-71 home rout of Anadolu Efes Istanbul on Friday and their less heralded neighbors Khimki, based on the outskirts of Russia’s capital, sprung an 80-75 upset at Besiktas Istanbul.

BELGRADE (Reuters) – Montenegro beat Norway 34-31 after double overtime in a captivating women’s European handball championship final on Sunday to gain sweet revenge for their defeat by the Scandinavians in the Olympic showpiece.

The match put the icing on the cake of a fiercely competitive 16-team tournament and capped an extraordinary final day which started with Hungary winning the bronze medal after an equally thrilling 41-38 overtime victory over hosts Serbia.

BELGRADE, Dec 1 (Reuters) – Serbian champions and league leaders Partizan Belgrade went into the three-month winter break six points clear of city rivals Red Star despite squandering a two-goal lead in a 2-2 draw at Spartak Subotica on Saturday.

Former European Cup winners Red Star missed a chance to gain ground on Partizan, who are chasing a record sixth successive league title, after they slumped to a 3-0 home defeat by Vojvodina Novi Sad in the evening kickoff and piled the pressure on their coach, Aleksandar Jankovic.

BELGRADE (Reuters) – Former champions Emporio Armani Milan’s fears of making an early exit from the EuroLeague grew after Friday’s 64-62 defeat at Caja Laboral Vitoria completed an eventful week for coach Sergio Scariolo.

Elsewhere, 1992 winners Partizan Belgrade rekindled their hopes of reaching the last 16 with a dramatic 75-74 home victory over Lithuanians Lietuvos Rytas while Alba Berlin and Khimki Moscow advanced with contrasting victories.