VEF defeated Tsmoki-Minsk on the road, 72-69 (10-20, 21-13, 19-14, 19-25).
Top Scorers
Tsmoki-Minsk: Aliaksandr Kudrautsau (17+3 stl), Dru Joyce (11+5 reb+7 ast), Aliaksei Trastsinetski (10+6 reb), Nemanja Milosevic (10+8 reb)
VEF: Janis Blums (19), Martins Meiers (14), Mareks Mejeris (11+10 reb)
Build-Up
The visitors surged to a 20-6 lead in the opening minutes, stunning the Falcon Club crowd. Mixing paint penetration and outside shooting, VEF enjoyed a comfortable 20-10 advantage at the end of the opening period.
But Minsk desperately needed a win to keep its playoff hopes alive. The Belarusians responded with a 21-13 edge in the 2nd quarter, cutting VEF’s lead to three at halftime, 33-31.
Tsmoki kept pushing in the 3rd quarter. Seven points from Aliaksandr Kudrautsau to open the period gave Tsmoki a three-point advantage, 40-37.
The home team led by as much as eight points, 50-42, late in the quarter before VEF closed on a 5-0 run.
Turning Point
VEF had a chance to return to .500 after three consecutive losses, including Thursday’s disappointing setback at home to Nizhny Novgorod.
The Latvians didn’t waste their opportunity. Down 53-49, Martins Meiers and Janis Blums scored nine straight to put VEF in control.
Leading by eight, 67-59, with 2:39 to play, the visitors nearly coughed up the lead in the final minutes. Tsmoki even had a chance to tie or take the lead, but a fatal turnover by Antonio Graves with under a minute to go allowed VEF to make it a two-possession game and hang on for the win.
VEF is now a game up on Enisey and Astana in 6th place, and three games up on 9th-place Nizhny Novgorod.
Tsmoki-Minsk drops to 4-13 and has lost nine of its last 10.
Stat
53% – Tsmoki only managed to convert 10 of 19 free-throw attempts. A slightly better night at the line might have been enough for a win.
Quotes
Tsmoki-Minsk head coach Igor Grishchuk:
– I want to congratulate my guys on competing and showing toughness. I think the fans enjoyed the game. If we had hit our free throws, it would have been a different result.
VEF head coach Janis Gailitis:
– Tsmoki is a tough team and during the final seconds they showed that they compete to the end. Of course, we should have taken control of the game earlier. Our mistakes prevented us from playing better in the 2nd quarter and pulling away.
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Up Next
Tsmoki-Minsk: March 5 at Khimki
VEF: March 12 vs. CSKA
