Zalgiris loses first preseason game to fellow Euroleague team 0

The preseason is truly underway and Wednesday marked another first as two Euroleague teams met on the court. Asseco Prokom defeated Zalgiris Kaunas 76:72 in a preseason contest in Klaipeda, Lithuania.

It was a good run for both sides as Prokom got strong efforts from the returning core of last season’s squad, led by Qyntel Woods’s 18 points, while Zalgiris trotted out some new faces, like Martynas Pocius and Povilas Cukinas, who both produced double-digit scoring efforts.

Prokom scored the last 7 points of the first quarter to take a 22:14 lead after 10 minutes. The lead grew to 30:16 before Adas Juskevicius rallied Zalgiris to 37:31 by halftime.

Pocius’s hot hand narrowed the gap to 1 early in the second half, only to see Woods lead Prokom back to a 55:45 advantage. Travis Watson and Dainius Salenga woke Zalgiris as head coach Gintaras Krapikas’s charges came back once again and were within 2 in the closing minutes, however the experience of Dan Ewing and Ronnie Burrell did not fail Prokom in the end.

Adam Hrycaniuk added 16 points for the winners, Ewing scored 12 and Burrell 11. Pocius paced Zalgiris with 16, Salenga and Juskevicius added 12 apiece and Cukinas netted 10.