[ad_1]
On Tuesday, Kaunas residents began the German double week victorious. “Žalgiris” beat the ALBA Berlin basketball players in their field 96:86 (21:23, 20:28, 27:10, 28:25).
At the end of the confrontation, the Kaunas club received unpleasant news from another European scene: Vitorija’s “Baskonia”, which triumphed in Athens, finally extinguished the hope of M. Shiller’s “Top 8” troop, which had fallen before the duel.
“Žalgiris” is a club that fights: a team fights, the fans fight for the team. We are fighters and we will not give up until the end of the competition, ”said Thomas Walkup of Žalgiris after the victory against ALBA.
Kaunas residents who started their sleepy matches with the German champions woke up after a long break: Žalgiris basketball players, who had a double-digit deficit after the first half, rose from the early fall and showed a completely different face in the second part of the duel.
However, in this match, Kaunas Club was led by new leaders. Lrytas.lt invites you to remember the changing drama that took place at Žalgiris Arena on Tuesday.
It was like night and day
Martin Schiller, who spoke about the honorable end of the rest of the season before the EuroLeague double week, had to donate several nerve cells on Tuesday. The passive defense of the defenders of the field allowed the opponents to feel the rhythm of the game and to obtain an early advantage.
Joffrey Lauvergne and Marius Grigonis, who used to lead “Žalgiris”, remained in their shadows, and Marcus Eriksson, who was in the ranks of ALBA, had already hit all three long shots in the first 12 minutes of the duel and had 17 points in his bill.
The basketball players, who came from the bench, tried to settle the affairs of Kaunas, but the guests from Berlin maintained their advantage until the end of the first part of the match.
Tragically, Kaunas, who played the latter part of the second quarter, came out on a long break by ten points – 41:51.
An unpleasant image forced M. Schiller to act: a basketball specialist from Austria raised his voice about his students in the locker room.
“The coach raised his voice, we probably needed it. What a kick in the back,” said Lukas Lekavičius, who celebrated his 27th birthday on the day of the match after the duel.
In the second part of the duel, the players returned to the court with a completely different fervor.
27:10 The Žalgiris basketball players, who won the third quarter, not only reconsidered the result, but also broke the match in their favor. Žalgiris’ team, which was all the rage in attack and finished in defense, allowed the guests to go ahead only halfway through the third quarter.
“When you defend poorly, you get 51 points, we allow them to return to defense in time, we attack statically and it was the kind of game that ALBA needed. When we started defending well, everything stopped,” said Thalk Walkup, who scored 15 points. .
In the fourth quarter, M. Schiler’s students began to crush their rivals and at the same time led by up to 21 points – 89:68.
“Of course I was very unhappy with the first part of the game, it’s unacceptable. During the long break I let them understand, I’m glad they reacted to my bitter words,” thought the 39-year-old strategist after the duel.
New leaders
The most useful player of the whole season “Žalgiris” M. Grigonis on Tuesday in Kaunas was like his. The 26-year-old defender scored just 6 points (1/1 trit., 3/4 penalty shots) in 19 minutes on the floor, made 2 mistakes, committed 5 times and left the field with 3 utility points.
The 198cm tall Žalgiris player did not score as few utility points in any of this season’s Euroleague games. The Kaunas club leader attacked the basket from the game only once: in the fourth quarter he scored a long shot.
However, even without the contribution of M. Grigonis, the Lithuanian champions did not part ways on Tuesday: M. Schiller’s army discovered the new guides.
Kaunas was led to victory by L. Lekavičius, who shone on his birthday, who scored 21 points (3/7 dvit., 5/5 trit.) In 21 minutes, he bounced 3 balls, made 5 assists and scored 22 points from utility.
The 178cm tall defender hit all five shots with three points. Žalgiris’s team made a total of 16 of the 24 long shots taken.
“I threw the first one and felt like I could quit. Then the hands are separated when the first throws are made. I trusted myself and everything fell apart, “- after the confrontation, the resident of Žalgiris, who successfully celebrated his birthday, spoke modestly.
Kaunas club legionaries Th.Walkupas and N. Hayes added 15 points each.
The Lithuanian tandem – Karolis Lukošiūnas and Martinas Gebenas – also stood out in the ranks of “Žalgiris”. They both scored 12 points each.
“They both work very hard, they do a lot of extra work that nobody sees. I like M. Geben’s style of play, he is a lover of two-on-two games, he completes the attacks well. In my opinion, he defends himself well, which is great.
K.Lukošiūnas is a great three-point shooter “, – M. Schiller was happy with Žalgiris’ game, which shone after the victory.
Finish line
Until the end of the season, Kaunas Žalgiris had only two games left to play in the Euroleague. On Thursday, another German challenge awaits the Lithuanian champions: the Žalgiris team will face the Bayern Munich team, who have pleasantly surprised many basketball fans this season.
The first meeting of these teams in December 2020 was won by Kaunas Club. This time, the hero of the match became M. Grigonis, who took the winning shot.
Žalgiris will end his regular season on April 8. At home, the Lithuanian champions will host Panathinaikos Athens basketball players.
Currently, with 16 victories, M. Schiller’s students rank eleventh in the rankings.
“We want to win 18 games that previously guaranteed a place in the Top 8 stage of the Euroleague. Often, even 17 wins were enough to make it to the playoffs. 18 wins is our main goal,” argued an Austrian basketball specialist.
Although the path to the top eight of the strongest is already closed for Kaunas residents, “Žalgiris” can still fight for a higher spot in the final team line-up. This would allow them to replenish their wallet even more before next season.
