By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Following the departure of Lonnie Walker IV back to the NBA with the Philadelphia 76ers, Zalgiris Kaunas was in urgent need of a victory to keep hoping about a Play-Ins push in the standings.
Visiting an in-form Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade Arena, Andrea Trinchieri’s team managed to prevail 86-80 to come back to winning fashion. They couldn’t have done it without Sylvain Francisco.
The French guard stepped up to lead the Lithuanian side, recording one of his best performances since joining Zalgiris with 25 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. He also delivered shooting-wise (1/2 in two-pointers, 6/9 from three-point range, and 5/5 at the line).
His 31-PIR night would have made him the sole candidate for the EuroLeague MVP of Round 27, but someone else followed him on Friday night to register the same PIR in another victory.
It’s the case of Carlik Jones, who pushed Partizan Belgrade to the 86-73 victory against Baskonia – the third consecutive for the black-and-white Serbians. He had 21 points despite shooting 0/2 from three-point range, while also adding 6 rebounds and 6 assists.
Therefore, they were both named EuroLeague Round 27 MVPs. It’s the third time this season that the MVP of the Round is shared among two or more players, following Round 2 and Round 10.
PHOTO CREDIT: Turkish Airlines EuroLeague