Zalgiris advance to the Semifinals with win in Pasvalys 2

Zalgiris Kaunas made its way to the Betsafe-LKL Semifinals with a 2-0 series win against Pieno Zvaigzdes. The green-and-whites went on the road to Pasvalys and won the second face-off 100-81.

Having to play without Marius Grigonis, the Kaunas side was on the back seat in the opening minutes, as the hosts drained 4 three-pointers. Nevertheless, led by Nigel Hayes, who had 15 points in the first quarter, the visitors jumped ahead 30-24.

The defending champions struggled as the second quarter took off, as Pasvalys took hold of a 10-point advantage, 34-44, but got back into the game after Karolis Lukosiunas’ three long-range bombs.

Zalgiris came out of halftime with a different energy, and that translated to a 12-point advantage for the green-and-whites. They kept building on the run, and with a couple more baskets from Lukosiunas, cruised to a 100-81 win.

Nigel Hayes dropped 23 points in the win, as Lukas Lekavicius added 19. Karolis Lukosiunas finished up with 17 points and 4 steals, while Joffrey Lauvergne came close to a double-double, ending the game with 12 points and 9 rebounds. Rokas Jokubaitis had 10 points to his name, as Martinas completed the night with 9.