Zalgiris Kaunas became the first team with a 3-0 record after beating Crvena Zvezda (68-75) in “Aleksandar Nikolić” Hall in Belgrade.
Crvena Zvezda managed to limit the performance of Thomas Walkup, who was in foul rouble and didn’t make a basket in his 14 minutes on the court. By limiting the performance of the American guard the job wasn’t finished, because other players stepped up and overcame his absence.
Teenager Rokas Jokubaitis replaced the aforementioned guard and posted nine points, six rebounds, and five assists for Zalgiris. He helped his team get back in the first quarter, and made the three-point shot in the last part of the game for the seven-point lead.
The team of Zalgiris outrebounded Crvena Zvezda (36 to 25). Four different players had five or more rebounds – Joffrey Louvergne was leading with eight (four defensive and four offensive), Rokas Jokubaitis added six defensive board, while both Nigel Hayes and Paulius Jankunas contributed five each.
Lukas Lekavicius was the best player of Zalgiris Kaunas with 16 points (4/4 for 2, 2/3 for 3 and 2/2 from the free-throw line) and four assists (index rating of 20), while the French player Joffrey Louvergne added 12 points and eight rebounds. These two were the only players that scored more than 10 points for the away squad.
Last round’s MVP, Jordan Loyd, scored 19 points on the other side. His teammates Dejan Davidovac and Torrian Walden ended the match with 11 points each.
