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Kaunas “Žalgiris” failed to end their losing streak in the Euroleague on Thursday. Although Kaunas residents reduced the accumulation in the second half of the match, 75:83 lagged behind the Zenit St. Petersburg team.
The Krepsinis.net portal reviewed and evaluated the individual performance of Kaunas residents at this meeting.
Walkupas
# 0 Thomas Walkup (19 min, 5 points, 2 reps, 4 reps, 2 points, 1 ball). Rating – 4.
At the start of the match, it seemed that the American Žalgiris could use their physical advantages over Kevin Panga in this match, but later, thanks to the defense of the Zenit team, they completely covered up this problem. In the attack, the Kaunas team organizer got stuck and realized that only 2 pitches out of 9 were “out of the game.” This is also not all in defense this time. After the substitutions, Th.Walkupas could not defend himself against the rivals’ front-line players, and several times K. Pangas, who played more clearly, missed.
# 4 Lukas Lekavičius (21 min., 2 points, 1 rep., 2 res., 2 p., -1 useful ball). Rating – 3.
L.Lekavičius only entered the square with points, but then went completely unnoticed. Xavier Pascual’s students turned off the defender “Žalgiris” to perfection and he could not bring energy to the team’s game. On defense, all the players on the perimeter of Kaunas had trouble stopping their opponents, with the latter flying towards the basket of “Žalgiris” one after another with precise long shots.
# 10 Nigel Hayes (21 min, 9 points, 2 reps, 2 reps, 14 helpful votes). Rating – 5.
Although the US numbers don’t look bad, he did all the good work in the fourth quarter alone. N. Hayes, who gave Paul Jankūnas a spot in the starting five, opened with a three-point pitch early in the fourth quarter. Although “Žalgiris” tried to save at the end of the match, the match was practically lost during the first two halves. At the time, Hayes’ contribution was also very modest. The American struggled to deal with Will Thomas and the other tall opponents on defense and was late to the aid of the perimeter players, not even looking at the basket on offense.
# 13 Paulius Jankūnas (13 min., 6 points, 5 rebounds, 7 useful points). Rating – 5.
The captain started another game in the first fifth and was immediately attacked “one on one” by the “fourth number” of rival W. Thomas. Although in a couple of episodes the veteran “Žalgiris” resisted the contact offered by the opponents, he quickly collected personal fouls and was removed from the field. In the second half of the match, P.Jankūnas showed his fighting spirit a couple of times and scored points under the opponents’ basket. P.Jankūnas might be more useful at the center-forward position, but he’s already full in the Žalgiris team, and as a heavyweight veteran forward, he’s already ineffective.
Milaknis
# 21 Artūras Milaknis (13 min., 2 points, 1 res., 1 bl., -1 useful ball). Rating – 1.
The impression is that the batteries of the old Žalgiris are completely discharged. A.Milaknis has played one of the worst games in recent seasons. In defense, the attacker did not reach his direct opponents and even broke the rules twice by taking them out of the three-point zone. One of those moments ended with an accurate KCRiverso of three points. The attack does not create options for A. Milaknis for the shots, and the veteran himself is not able to create opportunities. The biggest problem with “Žalgiris” is in the position of the “third number” and until this void is somehow filled, it is quite naive to expect a biased success.
# 23 Martin Geben (7 min., 0 points, 1 res., 0 helpful votes).
Although the “Žalgiris” center forward failed on the field, he did not stand out during them, he never threw it to the basket and went unnoticed in the fight closest to the basket. Recently, the center has been on the sidelines of Žalgiris’ game and has not played a more important role.
# 24 Augustine Rubit (17 min, 12 pts, 4 pts, 18 pp). Rating – 8.
Little by little, A. Rubitas became one of the leaders of “Žalgiris” in the attack. The American returned to attack the basket perfectly: he hit 5 points from two points in 6 attempts. It is unfortunate that the attempt to use him and Jofrey Lauvergne simultaneously on the field did not work. This attempt partly cost a bad start to the third quarter. In defense, A. Rubitas “one on one” has little to offer against centers like Artūras Gudaitis, when they bring the ball closer to the basket. Still, looking at him, how many minutes A. Rubitas spent in the plaza, he was extremely efficient and helpful again.
# 31 Rokas Jokubaitis (21 min., 4 points, 1 rep., 1 res., 1 bl., -1 useful ball). Rating – 3.
As usual, R. Jokubaitis became the first man from Žalgiris to get off the bench and replaced S. Vasturis, who looked poor on defense. However, this time the defender did not produce the desired effect: he lost his first 2 shots “out of the game”. He was also unable to defend A. Hollins and other opponents. In the second half of the match, R. Jokubaitis managed to sharpen Kaunas’s attacks and complete them with points in a couple of episodes. Still, in this match, this talent was far from his best performances.
Vasturia
# 32 Steve Vasturia (15 min, 0 points, 3 rebounds, 1 rel., 1 pm, -4 points). Rating – 1.
S.Vasturia finished another match with a negative utility score. Already at the start of the game, the American lost the first pitch, and in defense he chose fouls and let the rival leaders play. This basketball player failed to improve his performance after getting off the bench, and everything was perfectly illustrated by Alex Poythress blocking in the third half.
# 40 Marius Grigonis (30 min., 18 points, 1 rep, 3 res., 1 rep, 1 p., 22 helpful votes). Rating – 9.
The leader of “Žalgiris” said his word already during the second quarter, when he hit 3 long shots in a row in a fairly short stretch. Subsequently, M. Grigonis added another three points and finished the match with 18 points. It was another solid game from M. Grigonis and there can be no greater reproach for this basketball player even after these lost games. Still, the team’s defense mechanism doesn’t work, so no matter how good individual basketball players perform in attack, it’s hard to expect it to bring victories.
Lauvergne’as
# 77 Jofrey Lauvergne (23 min, 17 pts, 8 bounces, 1 p., 1 p. M., 3 p. M., 19 p.). Rating – 9.
The Frenchman played not only the most productive game, but also the most useful in the Euroleague with the Žalgiris jersey. In the first part of the match, when “Žalgiris” attacks stalled, he even made two long throws, one of them on target. It was his first accurate triple this season. Lauvergne’s performance was one of the most positive things about this match. The rivals coped well with the basketball players on the perimeter of “Žalgiris”, so the front-row players had more space, who took advantage of their advantages in attack. Lauvergne seemed more mobile and fresh than recently. Hopefully we continue to see such a central hub.
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