In a FIBA Intercontinental Cup semifinal highlighted by an incredible comeback, Rytas Vilnius proved their championship pedigree. At Beijing National Indoor Stadium, the squad coached by Nedas Pacevičius erased an eight-point fourth-quarter deficit in the clutch to defeat South American champions Boca Juniors Buenos Aires 77:70, punching a historic ticket to the tournament’s grand final.
Defensive intensity set the tone early. Kay Bruhnke opened the scoring for Vilnius with a triple (3:0), but Jose Vildoza and Leonardo Lema quickly countered from beyond the arc (3:3). Although Cassius Winston found Gytis Radzevičius for a transition layup (7:5) and an Augustas Marčiulionis drive widened the lead (9:7), Martin Cuello buried a long-range shot to put the opponents ahead (9:10). Michael Devoe’s steal and score briefly restored the advantage (11:10), but free throws from Agustin Barreiro and a Kriss Helmanis dunk carried the Argentine club to an 11:16 lead at the end of the opening quarter.
In the second quarter, a Devoe triple and an offensive putback by Gytis Masiulis edged Vilnius back in front (17:16). However, Lucas Faggiano and Nicolas Stenta struck from deep to shift momentum back to Boca (17:21). Radzevičius answered with a three-pointer (20:21) and Winston drove inside for two (22:23), but aggressive interior play from Micheal Warren and Francisco Caffaro widened the gap (23:29). Matas Jogėla sank a three (26:29), while Bruhnke free throws and a Marčiulionis bucket kept Vilnius close (31:35). Right before halftime, a Caffaro three-point play pushed the lead further (31:38); Devoe then fed Artūras Gudaitis inside (33:38), but Vildoza hit a pair from the charity stripe after a Martynas Paliukėnas foul to send Boca Juniors into the break up 33:40.
After the restart, Warren expanded the lead (33:42), but Jogėla drained back-to-back three-pointers off assists from Radzevičius and Marčiulionis (41:46). Gudaitis answered Caffaro free throws with a basket inside (43:48), Masiulis converted at the line, and following a block by Masiulis on defense, Devoe threw up a fast-break alley-oop for Bruhnke, trimming the margin to 47:48. Boca responded through a Faggiano three-pointer (47:51). Even though Ricky Lindo Jr. answered from beyond the arc (50:52), Faggiano caught fire late in the third, drilling two consecutive triples to re-establish Boca’s cushion at 50:58.
Rytas Vilnius unleashed a furious assault in the final frame. Sparked by Devoe free throws and a transition layup from Masiulis off an Ignas Urbonas steal (54:58), the comeback gathered unstoppable momentum: Lindo Jr. hit two three-pointers and Marčiulionis added two driving finishes to level the score at 64:64. When Vildoza connected from downtown, Marčiulionis drew a foul and sank two free throws (66:67). Devoe then generated a steal and fed Gudaitis under the rim to put Vilnius in front (68:67). Moments later, Devoe hit a midrange jumper (70:67), Gudaitis rejected Warren at the rim, and with 90 seconds left, Devoe buried a clutch dagger three (73:68). With 37 seconds on the clock, Marčiulionis grabbed a vital offensive rebound and converted a clutch basket (75:70), before free throws from Devoe and Radzevičius iced the game.
Outscoring their opponents 27:12 in the final quarter, Rytas Vilnius sealed a thrilling 77:70 victory and will take the court in Beijing on Sunday to fight for the FIBA Intercontinental Cup championship trophy.