Szombathely KC came out on top against Szolnoki Olajbányász 81-72 in NB I A on Friday evening. The hosts sit eighth after four games with two wins and two defeats, while the visitors are fourth following five matches. To be fair, the away side had the better record coming into this one.
My forecast called for a Szolnoki win with 55 per cent confidence. The prediction missed by a country mile. And here's the thing — the home side tightened things up defensively and simply refused to let the visitors settle into any rhythm. They didn't need to outshoot anyone; they just needed to make life uncomfortable.
Szombathely's recent form has been mixed. They lost 80-109 to Atommu Paks last weekend and 82-98 to Alba Fehérvár back in September. Before that came a 100-82 win over DÉAK. By then you could see they were capable of finding their levels, but consistency has been the issue.
Szolnoki arrived with three wins from five but showed vulnerability away from home. They lost 76-93 to Dinamo București on Wednesday and 80-90 to Zielona Góra on Tuesday. The 74-70 win over NKA Pécs was their only positive result on the road. One mistake ends it when you're playing like that.
The result means Szombathely extend their unbeaten run at home to two games while Szolnoki's streak of away losses reaches three. Both sides have zero points in the table — the season has barely begun — but this one carries weight. The underdogs proved they could compete with the higher-ranked opposition on their own floor.
