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Photo: BNS
BNS photo
In the first half of the match, Kaunas Žalgiris hit 10 triples and, after a long break, Martin Schiller’s student caravan surpassed the 100-point mark and got along well with the Neptūnas basketball players from Klaip deda (104: 74) .
Man of the match
Today, however, the game was shrouded in mystery. Not receiving the COVID-19 test in time, the Kaunas team waited a long time in the Žalgiris arena and at the same time there were doubts that the duel would take place.
Even at an unscheduled time, but the match took place. The time was adjusted twice, initially from 5:20 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., and later at 7:30 p.m., so that Kaunas residents could reach Klaipėda on time and warm up properly.
It is obvious that not only the organizers of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL), but also the men of Žalgiris were concerned about this situation before the match. Coach Schiller, who was very happy with the way the game was going, but still wanted to make a change to the lineup.
“It was a hard day waiting for the results of COVID-19, it is not easy for both teams to get serious when it is not known at the beginning of the day if the match will take place. Most importantly, no one was injured, as it was a situation where the pace was not in line with the game – a 38-year-old strategist spoke at a post-game press conference. – Today both teams hit triples, I think it was a match nail. Despite a good attack, after a long break we tried to improve our defense and that led to victory. “
When asked why Joffrey Lauvergne and Karolis Lukošiūnas did not go to Klaipėda today, the strategist admitted that there were doubts about the Lithuanian, as he may have been infected with the coronavirus.
“Joffrey, we need a little rest, and thanks to Charles, we got a negative answer on the test, but for your peace of mind, we’ll wait for the second morning and only then will we get you back online. We thought Carol was ill, but luckily her test was negative, ”said Schiller.
At that time, Neptūnas strategist Tomas Gaidamavičius emphasized after the game that teams of different levels had come together and questioned the concentration of his students.
“We met a team of different levels that compete in the Euroleague and they have been together since the beginning of the match. I don’t know why, but we were so relaxed that we didn’t fight or contact – the coach shrugged. – In the first half, the opponents managed to score 8 triples. This is a great result. We couldn’t rotate our defenses properly and then we went back and got into our game. However, “Žalgiris” did not tend to relax, he used the top five for most of the match and had a huge impact on the final result. “
– Was the result affected by the uncertainty before the game?
– I do not think so. Both teams were treated equally and did not have to knock out anything. The aggressive defense of “Žalgiris” disturbed him more than some time changes.
– Despite the crushing defeat, what positive do you see?
– We hit the triples very well. Among the positive things, I was able to highlight that I managed to parody the players, to give the young people a chance. For them, it is a great opportunity to grow in front of such a high-level team. Of course, there are some of those risks with the result, but you want them to improve. We are not only tasked with winning.
– Why wasn’t Martynas Mažeika there today?
– Martin has minor injuries and suffers from back pain. Klaidas Metrikis also played with a sore back today, and we decided to save Mažeika, rather than hook up a couple of backups to make this happen. The next two games will be very important, so it’s better to have Martin then than to risk today.
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