EuroLeague starts with the loss on the road for Zalgiris 47
Zalgiris Kaunas started the new 2021-22 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season on Friday. ASVEL Villeurbanne came on top 88-76 before its appreciative fans at the Astroballe.
ASVEL shot 11-for-23 from downtown for the night, led by Elie Okobo who scored 23 points in 24 minutes. Chris Jones had 14 points, 6 assists and 3 steals, Youssoupha Fall collected 12 points plus 9 rebounds, while Charles Kahudi scored 11 in victory.
Janis Strelnieks netted 21 for Zalgiris while Emmanuel Mudiay scored 12.
Okobo had a three-point play early and William Howard knocked down a triple for ASVEL, but Strelnieks hit a pair from downtown to help the visitors tie at 10-10. Fall had 2 put-backs and Okobo a corner triple that helped ASVEL lead 19-16 after 10 minutes.
Back-to-back triples from Paul Lacombe and Kahudi opened 31-23 difference before Okobo hit back-to-back long-range daggers, including one in transition at 38-25. Strelnieks answered with a one-footed step-back triple, sparking a 2-8 run which Mudiay capped with his own shot from deep. Streleniks hit his fourth three-pointer to make it 44-36 at halftime.
Edgaras Ulanovas and Strelnieks took it inside and Joffrey Lauvergne had a put-back dunk early in the third quarter. Tyler Cavanaugh and Josh Nebo tied it 50-50 for Zalgiris midway through the third, but ASVEL replied with back-to-back threes from Jones and Antoine Diot before Jones nailed a second-chance shot from downtown to re-open a 59-50 edge.
The hosts took a 63-55 lead into the fourth quarter then opened it further with a 13-1 run. Diot sparked things with a corner triple, then set up Kostas Antetokounmpo for a monster alley-oop dunk. Kahudi followed with a three-point play and a triple before Antetokounmpo’s put-back dunk made it 76-56. Strelnieks kept Zalgiris alive with 7 consecutive points before a triple apiece from Niels Giffey and Ulanovas helped get the visitors within 80-71 with 4:00 to go. However, Okobo, Jones and Fall scored the next 6 points, sealing the deal.
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