Zalgiris wins back-and-forth battle in Berlin 12
Zalgiris Kaunas earned a victory in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague after beating ALBA Berlin 66-63 at Mercedes-Benz Arena.
In a topsy-turvy game in which the biggest lead on the night was 6 points, the contest was not decided for good until Rolands Smits’s layup with 1.8 seconds left.
Zalgiris finally won on the road again, snapping a four-game losing streak, while ALBA lost its eighth game in its last nine to drop to 7-20.
Isaiah Taylor scored 14 points for Zalgiris, who also had Edgaras Ulanovas pick up 10 points in the win. Achille Polonara enjoyed his best game since joining Zalgiris mid-season, posting 9 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals.
ALBA forward Luke Sikma had a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.
Jaleen Smith hit a three-pointer early on as ALBA opened an 4-8 lead after four minutes. Zalgiris’ defense started getting stops and that allowed the visitors to lead 15-14 after 10 minutes.
ALBA twice evened the game – 22-22 and 27-27 – but Zalgiris’ defense held the German side scoreless for the final 2:25 minutes of the half. Lukas Lekavicius sparked Zalgiris with 7 points and 2 steals in the final 4 minutes for a 33-27 advantage at the interval.
ALBA was unable to find its usual rhythm on offense, but Sikma and Maodo Lo hit a three-pointer apiece in a 10-2 run during the first 6 minutes of the second half to see the home side nudge in front, 35-37. ALBA remained ahead, 44-45, after 30 minutes.
Thanks to its defense, Zalgiris was able to hold ALBA scoreless for nearly three minutes, with Taylor scoring 4 points down the other end to help the guests move ahead, 52-47. Christ Koumadje helped ALBA trim the margin to 53-52 and, thanks to Zalgiris missing some free throws, Lo put ALBA up 55-56. Ulanovas and Taylor scored tough baskets in the paint and, after the team had made just 7-of-15 free throws in the quarter, Ulanovas drained 2 foul shots with 6.6 seconds to go for a 64-60 lead. Rolands Smits added a layup with 1.8 seconds remaining to finish off the game.
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