Lietuvos Rytas won its second straight LKL title after defeating Zalgiris 80-71 in Game 7 of LKL Finals in a packed Siemens Arena. It was the first time in club’s history that Rytas won two consecutive LKL titles.
Zalgiris, supported by three thousand visiting fans from Kaunas, had a better start as they built small lead in the first quarter. The hosts managed to respond late in the first quarter as they narrowed the gap to just a single point.
The second quarter was as close as the first one but it was Rytas who left the court at the half with a one-point lead. Rytas up 35-34 after 20 minutes of play and the most important part of the game was still left to be played.
Milko Bjelica who was the game’s top scorer with 24 points helped Rytas start the second half strongly. While Zalgiris struggled to find their way to the basket, their arch rivals took full advantage by extending their lead to 11 points before the final quarter.
Starting the fourth quarter with a 11-point deficit Zalgiris needed to come closer as soon as possible. But the plan didn’t work and instead Rytas reached a 15-point lead. Aleksandar Capin tried to keep his team in the game with a couple of late three-pointers though it wasn’t enough.
There were some interesting quotes in the press conference after the game. Rimas Kurtinaitis, head coach of Lietuvos Rytas, whose contract with the club runs out this summer declared publicly that he is willing to stay in Vilnius if he receives and offer from Rytas.
Meanwhile Vladimir Romanov, the owner of Zalgiris, did not want to talk much. ‘Lithuania was once again robbed’, was his reaction to the game before he left the press room.
By winning LKL Rytas secured a place in next year’s Euroleague group stage as they got Euroleague B license. Zalgiris themselves hold an A license which also puts them directly into group stage.
