Another thrilling Lithuanian Basketball League (Betsafe-LKL) semifinal game took place in the series between Rytas Vilnius and Panevėžio 7bet-Lietkabelis.
Giedrius Žibėnas’ squad secured a narrow 87-86 (20:14, 20:22, 15:23, 32:27) home victory over the Panevėžys team and now leads the series 2-1 in the best-of-five matchup. The fourth game will take place on Friday in Panevėžys.
Rytas Vilnius started the game strong, opening an 8-0 lead after several plays from Ąžuolas Tubelis. Mantas Rubštavičius cut the gap to 5-11, but the margin quickly returned to double digits at 15-5. Rytas continued to maintain control (20-9) until the visitors scored five unanswered points (14-20). Gytis Masiulis and Jayvon Graves helped Rytas stay ahead (30-16), while Panevėžys committed several turnovers. Džordže Gagičius and Paulius Danusevičius attempted to close the gap, bringing it down to single digits at 27-36. With two minutes left in the quarter, Mantas Rubštavičius and P. Danusevičius scored again, and O. Kovliaras ended the quarter at 36-40.
Panevėžio 7bet-Lietkabelis showed determination after halftime. Dž. Gagičius and O. Kovliaras scored to tie the game at 44-44, marking the first lead of the match for the visitors when D. Bičkauskis made free throws midway through the third quarter (54-52). By the end of the quarter, Panevėžys led by four points (59-55), the largest advantage so far.
Rytas opened the fourth quarter with a 5-0 run to regain the lead (60-59), prompting a timeout from Nenad Čanak. Rytas pushed ahead (63-59), but Dž. Gagičius injured his ankle. This led to technical fouls being assessed: to the 7bet-Lietkabelis coach for entering the court and to the Rytas bench.
Mantas Rubštavičius missed key opportunities as Rytas tried to extend its lead to 67-61. Gabrielius Maldūnas answered with crucial points but later committed a foul. G. Masiulis struck a significant blow for the home team with a long-range shot (72-63), while O. Kovliaras responded with M. Normantas’ contribution (74-65). The Ukrainian’s efforts kept Panevėžys close (69-74), and his fifth three-pointer cut the margin to two points (74-76).
With two minutes remaining, G. Radzevičius scored important points (78-74), followed by two more from M. Normantas (80-74), prompting another timeout. Afterward, Panevėžys failed to capitalize offensively, while G. Radzevičius drew a foul, bringing Rytas closer to victory (83-76). M. Rubštavičius kept the visitors’ hopes alive at 82-84. With 20 seconds left, M. Normantas made his free throws (86-82), and Dž. Slavinskas added one more point (83-86). R.J. Cole sealed the win with a final free throw, and M. Rubštavičius’ buzzer-beater attempt changed nothing.
Rytas Vilnius: R.J. Cole 17, Gytis Radzevičius 14 (9 rebounds), Jayvon Graves 12, Ąžuolas Tubelis 11 (7 rebounds, 3/4 3PT), Gytis Masiulis 11 (3/4 3PT), Margiris Normantas 11
7bet-Lietkabelis: Oleksandra Kovliar 22 (8 assists, 5/5 3PT), Mantas Rubštavičius 21 (8 rebounds, 4/12 3PT), Paulius Danusevičius 11 (7 rebounds), Gabrielius Maldūnas 10 (10 rebounds), Dovis Bičkauskis 9