Zalgiris Kaunas downs Lietuvos Rytas

The big game of Lithuanian Basketball, the Vilnius-Kaunas derby between Lietuvos Rytas and Zalgiris Kaunas, took place on the weekend. Euroleague stalwarts Zalgiris made the journey to the capital city and gunned down their closest rivals Rytas 82-84, dishing the home team its first defeat of the domestic season. The game was played unusually early this year, but Zalgiris will use the victory to base the rest of the LKL season off.

Lietuvos Rytas vs. Zalgiris Kaunas, 82-84
The two powerhouses of Lithuanian Basketball have a storied past and there have been many tight games through the decades. This latest contest started out the same, with neither team able to wrestle an initiative through the opening quarter, going bucket for bucket and tying the first frame 17 apiece. The game remained close and there was an air of tension on the floor, but slowly through the second quarter Lietuvos Rytas put more plays together and managed to take the stanza 21-17. At the halftime buzzer the home team lead 38-34.

Zalgiris Kaunas regrouped in the locker room and emerged for the third quarter more aggressive in attack, outpacing the hosts through the period. It was still anybody’s games, a 20-23 Q3 doing little to separate the teams after half hour, 58-57 on the scoreboard. With one point separating the teams, the fourth stanza was tense and exciting, but the visitors managed to hold on to win a high scoring 10 minutes 27-30.

Paulius Jankunas scored 17 points in the winning effort, Arturas Milaknis scored 12 points, while Lukas Lekavicius and Edgaras Ulanovas grabbed 10 apiece.

Antanas Kavalliauskas led the scorers with 23 points and 6 boards, with Gediminas Orelikas grabbing 18 points and Adas Juskevicius adding 15 points.