VEF Riga defeated Avtodor Saratov at home, 87-76 (27-22, 17-19, 28-11, 15-24)
Top Scorers
VEF: Martins Meiers (25+10 reb), Janis Blums (19+6 reb), Armands Skele (17+7 ast)
Avtodor: Nick Minnerath (19+8 reb), Branden Frazier (15), Evgeny Kolesnikov (14)
Turning Point
Avtodor’s Evgeny Kolesnikov knotted the score at 39-39 with a 3-pointer late in the first half. After getting outscored by five in the opening period, Saratov appeared to be back on track.
But the Russians were not prepared for what came next. VEF went on a 33-13 run over the next 12+ minutes to grab a commanding 20-point lead entering the 4th quarter.
Riga did it as a team, limiting Avtodor’s chances on offense and scoring at a steady clip. The visitors never threatened in the final period, slumping to a 1-5 record with the loss.
VEF improves to 3-2 and moves into a tie for 5th with Lokomotiv.
Stat
25+10 – 25-year-old VEF center Martins Meiers set a personal best in the League with 25 points and matched his career high of 10 rebounds. After averaging 9.0 points and 4.1 rebounds per game last season, Meiers is up to 14.2 points and 5.4 rebounds, and has been a big factor in VEF’s 3-2 start.
Quotes
VEF head coach Janis Gailitis:
– We played a consistent game today. The beginning of the 1st and 3rd quarters went especially well. We slowed Avtodor down and played patient and smart ourselves. A lot of guys were nursing injuries today. I want to thank them.
Avtodor head coach Sergei Mokin:
– VEF held the initiative and controlled most of the game. We couldn’t turn things around. There were only a few times when we played well.
Up Next
VEF: November 20 at UNICS
Avtodor: November 20 vs. Lokomotiv-Kuban
Snapshot
