By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Zalgiris Kaunas finally reached their first victory in EuroLeague for the 2021-22 season after beating Panathinaikos 76-69 in Round 10, 222 days after their last one in the competition (it was once again a 93-78 home victory against the Greens in Round 34 of the 2020-21 campaign).
Arturas Milaknis fired up from the three-point line to lead Zalgiris with 13 points, despite a minor injury that saw him exiting at the final seconds of the first quarter. The Lithuanian side led by 43-37 after the first 20 minutes, and even though the deficit climbed up to 13 points in the third, Panathinaikos didn’t back down and even managed to make it a one-possession game in the fourth period.
Youngster big man Marek Blazevic was helpful on all ends of the court, scoring 10 points, along with 3 rebounds and 2 assists in 19 minutes, while Tyler Cavanaugh hit back-to-back baskets in the third period to exit the game with 12 points and 9 boards. Edgaras Ulanovas added up to the list of the top contributors with 11 points, 6 rebounds.
“It feels great. It has been a tough start to the year for us. I am just so grateful for the fans; they keep showing up and supporting us and they were huge tonight in our win. […] There is always pressure, every game, but obviously, you feel it. You want to win for the team, you want to win for the fans, for the organization. It feels great to get that done and we are just going to use this as a building block”, said Cavanaugh after the win
Daryl Macon Jr. scored a game-high of 21 points, 6 rebounds and three assists for Panathinaikos, though his efforts weren’t enough to keep the Greens alive in Kaunas. Ioannis Papapetrou followed with 10 points, as Panathinaikos now falls to a 2-8 record and will look to bounce back from a four-game skid when they face Bayern in Round 11.
“For sure, there is something that is missing, so we have these bad results. Unfortunately, we go close and that is what I said, we need one more extra thing. One shot, one better execution, two better defenses, to raise a little bit our opportunities in this kind of game”, commented coach Dimitris Priftis after the loss.
Zalgiris, on the other hand, hopes to turn this victory into a streak as they host Fenerbahce on Friday.
Photo: EuroLeague