The Vilnius Rytas Youth team, two-time winners of the FIBA Youth Champions League trophy, returns to this prestigious tournament. Tomorrow, April 7th, a six-day basketball marathon begins in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the Vilnius team will seek to once again prove their superiority against Europe’s strongest basketball academies.
Preparation is led by head coach Gintaras Kadžiulis and assistant Aistis Pilauskas. This coaching duo is heading to the tournament to defend their championship titles – last year they triumphed in this tournament with the team. Mindaugas Lukauskis, who has joined the staff, brings many years of professional basketball experience – less than a month ago, this coaching group, together with the team, won the MadCup U16 tournament championship title. The staff also includes assistant Egidijus Ženevičius and physical preparation coach Artūr Vincėlovič.
This year, Rytas is represented by a roster of 11 basketball players. Kornelijus Snitka has been elected team captain. Along with him, Gabrielius Buivydas and Benas Biržinis are named among the players recommended for the most attention. All three basketball players represented the capital’s team in the National Basketball League (URBO-NKL) this season. In addition to the aforementioned basketball players, the roster includes: Martynas Suzanovičius, Nojus Šatas, Jonas Trivokas, Simas Raščius, Armandas Bukelskis, Gabrielius Anskinas, Dominik Lavrinovich, and Gabrielius Krivas.
Group stage match schedule:
April 8, 4:00 PM – Rytas vs. Oldenburg EWE Baskets.
April 9, 4:00 PM – Rytas vs. Istanbul Galatasaray.
The further course of the tournament and the final team position will become clear after the group stage battles, depending on the results achieved.
You can watch the tournament live on the FIBA Champions League YouTube channel.
More information about the tournament: https://www.championsleague.basketball/en/youth