Ulanovas, Lekavicius lift Zalgiris to third straight win 24
Zalgiris Kaunas registered its third consecutive win by pulling out an 89:85 decision over visiting FC Barcelona on Thursday at Zalgirio Arena. Zalgirs improved to 9-12 on the season, while dropping Barcelona to 8-13.
The game featured countless lead changes and ties, and neither team had a lead bigger than 6 points in the first 38 minutes. However, a pair of fourth quarter runs, first 9:0 and later 11:2, gave Zalgiris the lead for good and the Lithuanian champs managed to hold on.
Lukas Lekavicius had a career-game with 17 points on 8-of-8 two point shooting along with 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. Edgaras Ulanovas also scored 17 points, his season-high, along with 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Paulius Jankunas added 15 points and Arturas Milaknis hit 4 of 7 three-pointers for 14 points in victory.
Barcelona had five double digit scorers, led by EuroLeague scoring king Juan Carlos Navarro, who had a season-high 17 points with 4 assists. Tyrese Rice tallied 12 points and 7 assists, Petteri Koponen also netted 12 points and Justin Doellman and Vitor Faverani had 11 apiece in defeat.
Koponen and Rice hit from long range, and Faverani scored 9 of Barcelona’s first 17 points in helping the visitors to a 13:19 lead. Brock Motum hit a three-pointer for the hosts, but Victor Claver answered with one of his own for Barcelona, giving the visitors an 18:24 lead after 10 minutes.
Barcelona kept the lead in the second thanks to Navarro, who hit a pair of triples and a driving layup. But Milaknis hit a three for the hosts, who managed to get to the free throw line and put together a 10:2 run and open a 39:34 lead late in the second. However, Koponen made a runner, which after 2 free throws from Faverani, made it 39:38 at halftime.
The third quarter alone featured five lead changes and six ties, and neither team had a lead bigger than 3 points. Lekavicius was the driving force for the hosts and Milaknis and Jankinas each hit a triple, while Stratos Perperoglou had 7 points for Barcelona during that stanza. It was only fitting that the teams were tied at 61:61 going into the fourth quarter.
Navarro hit his fourth triple, and with help from Rice and Ante Tomic the visitors built a 64:70 margin. But Milaknis got a lucky bounce on a corner triple, which sparked a 9-0 run. Navarro got Barcelona back in front, 73:74, but only briefly because the hosts scored the next 6 points, Ulanovas drove for a tough layup and Leo Westermann picked Navarro’s pocket for an easy layup and an 84:76 advantage. Rice and Doellman gave Barcelona a chance, cutting to 85:83 with 17 seconds to go, but Zalgiris made all the free throw at the end to seal the win.
Facebook comments