By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Everything looked good for Falco-Vulcano Szombathely, aiming to reach Reggio Emilia on top of Group F at a 3-1 record by leading for the vast majority of the second half against Rytas Vilnius.
However, the reigning Lithuanian champions not only came back to erase a 12-point deficit but survived the last few seconds of regulation to push even more in overtime, escaping from Hungary with a crucial 82-72 victory. At this point, it’s a two-team battle for the first place.
For Rytas Vilnius, former Baskonia center Steven Enoch had a huge night at the board with a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds, shooting perfectly from two (5/5). The team’s captain Gytis Radzevicius did the same by concluding with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
RJ Cole’s 13-point night and Jayvon Graves’ all-around performance of 8 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, with Savion Flagg adding 13 points too, did the rest.
Zoltan Perl continued his huge scoring campaign by adding 22 points but shooting only 7/18 from the field. He was clutch at the line with 00:47 remaining on the clock to tie at 68-68 but missed the two-point driving layup to win it all, as the game went to overtime.
For the Hungarians, Marvin Clark followed with 17 points in tireless 41:10 minutes of playing time, while Marcell Pongo tried to contribute with 11 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists.
Post-game press conference:
PHOTO CREDIT: Basketball Champions League