Zalgiris gets a defeat vs Shved led Khimki 45
Zalgiris Kaunas played another close game in the EuroLeague, but eventually lost to Khimki Moscow Region 83-84 in Lithuania on Friday. Both teams now have 3-6 records in the standings.
Alexey Shved led the winners with 25 points and 10 assists. Jordan Mickey added 20 points while Stefan Markovic had 13 for Khimki.
Brandon Davies led Zalgiris with 23 points and 13 rebounds. Marius Grigonis added 13 points while Aaron White and Nate Wolters each had 12 for the hosts.
Nate Wolters and White shined early to give Zalgiris a 6-2 lead. Malcolm Thomas stepped up for Khimki but Davies and White kept Zalgiris way ahead, 15-8. Mickey took over with a reverse layup, a dunk and a couple of close baskets get Khimki within 22-16. Antanas Kavaliauskas scored down low and Derrick Walton Jr. added free throws for a 26-19 Zalgiris lead after 10 minutes.
A three-pointer by Grigonis made it a double-digit game, 29-19. Egor Vialtsev struck from downtown, and he got help from Markovic and Mickey to give Khimki hope at 35-27. Shved followed a triple with a layup-plus-free throw, but an outstanding Davies made a couple of put-back baskets that helped Zalgiris keep a 39-37 edge at halftime.
Grigonis and Egaras Ulanovas scored after the break but Shved hit 5 of 5 free throws and buried a huge catch-and-shoot triple to complete Khimki’s comeback, 45-47. Grigonis kept pacing Zalgiris but Anthony Gill and Tony Crocker boosted the guests’ margin to 50-55. Davies and Wolters brought Zalgiris within 57-58 after 30 minutes.
Markovic followed a three-pointer with a fastbreak layup to give the guests a 63-67 edge with 6 minutes left. Shved found Alexey Zubkov for a triple, hit a jumper and added a layup that made it a six-point game, 68-74. Free throws by Davies got Zalgiris within 76-79 with 1:17 left. Mickey hit 3-of-5 free throws while Davies, White and Wolters made 5 of 6 for an 81-84 score with 5.7 seconds left. Milaknis had a chance to force overtime but his three-pointer rimmed out and resulted in Davies making a harmless tip-in ahead of the final buzzer.
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