Zalgris Kaunas closed the first set of games in the Ciutat de L’Hospitalet tournament with a win over Catalana Occident Manresa, 62-76, in Group B on the first day of the competition. Tauras Jogela paced the winners with 19 points and 9 rebounds, while Simas Raupys added 14 points and Kaspars Vecvagars scored 12. On the losing side, Marcus Eriksson led Manresa with 23 points, nailing 4 three pointers, and Adria Sala scored 9. Zalgiris applied defensive pressure from the start, limiting Manresa to 9 points in the first quarter while scoring 15, but the second period was a more offensive minded affair, as Manresa edged the period 20-19 thanks to 8 points by Eriksson and last second layup by Cristian Sanchez, entering the break only down by 29-34.The third quarter saw Zalgiris take off, pressing Manresa defensively and crashing the glass at both ends, as Jogela and Lukas Lekavicius executed a beautiful fast break alley hoop and the first scored 7 straight points to put them ahead 41-50. Vecvagars started the fourth with a triple and Zalgiris jumped to a 44-62 lead, but Manresa was able to close in, 51-62, with a 7-0 run. An Adria Sala triple even put them in position to attempt a comeback, 57-67, with 2 minutes left. But Eriksson missed his next attempt and Lekavicius put the nail in the coffin with his own long range bomb, 58-70, to give Zalgiris enough of a cushion and their first win of the competition.
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
Euroleague.net
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