VEF Latvia defeated Zielona Gora Poland at home, 83-57 (18-16, 19-17, 23-12, 23-12).
Top Scorers
VEF: Andrejs Grazulis (18), Arturs Ausejs (14 + 5 reb), Mareks Mejeris (13 + 6 reb + 5 ast)
Zielona Gora: Przemyslaw Zamojski (15), Adam Hrycaniuk (11 + 8 ast), Lukasz Koszarek (11)
Story
VEF picked up a much-needed win at home, pulling away from Zielona Gora in the second half for its third victory of the season. Andrejs Grazulis led the Latvians with 18 points, shooting 7-10 from the field.
Despite knocking down only 30% of its 36 three-point attempts, Riga was extremely efficient inside the arc: 21-29.
Zielona Gora hung around for 20 minutes, thriving in a low-tempo slugfest. The Poles only trailed 37-33 at halftime, but a 5-0 run from VEF to open the 3rd quarter set the tone as the home team would outscore its visitors by 22 in the second half.
Steve Zack was big for Riga, scoring seven points early in the 3rd to give VEF its first double-digit lead, 47-37. Arturs Ausejs added a pair of 3-pointers and Riga took a commanding 15-point lead into the 4th quarter.
Zielona Gora never threatened down the stretch, scoring only 12 points in each of the final two quarters. The visitors were let down by 17 turnovers and 25% shooting from beyond the arc (4-16) in the defeat.
VEF, which entered the game in last place, improves to 3-11 and 13th place. Zielona Gora has now lost seven in a row and drops to 2-9.
Block Party
Игроки @vefriga делают 3 блок-шота за 4 секунды в матче против @basket_zg ❌❌❌
Wow! 3 straight BLOCKS in 4 seconds by VEF’s players ❌❌❌ pic.twitter.com/Yka6BFEm5q
— VTB United League (@VTBUL) January 13, 2019
Stat
+17 – VEF enjoyed a 25-8 advantage in points off turnovers.
Quotes
Zielona Gora head coach Igor Jovovic: “I think we played pretty well in the first half, but you need to play all 40 minutes in basketball. VEF had the advantage in the second half and literally dominated for 20 minutes. It’s a sad moment for myself and my team, but we need to realize that if we don’t get better, we will have a tough time against any opponent. We need to try to improve our play.”
VEF head coach Janis Galitis: “Everyone deserved this win today. We played well individually and as a team. We found the right balance. We were motivated and well prepared for the game. We gave 100%. Congratulations to the fans and the players on this win!”
Photos
