The double-round week ended in disappointment for Zalgiris Kaunas, as the team fell short 89-95 against Dubai Basketball at the Coca-Cola Arena on Friday evening.
Zalgiris started the game with strong energy, building a 34-24 lead after the first quarter and holding a 48-45 advantage at halftime.
However, the momentum shifted in the third quarter as Dubai put together a game-changing 16-0 run, giving them a 64-73 lead entering the fourth. Despite Zalgiris’s push to narrow the gap to just 87-90 in the closing minute, late free throws from Dwayne Bacon and Mfiondu Kabengele allowed Dubai to secure the win and left Zalgiris empty-handed at the end of a demanding week.
Azuolas Tubelis paced Zalgiris with career highs in points (22) and PIR (25). Sylvain Francisco scored 15 points, Deividas Sirvydis had 12, Arnas Butkevicius contributed 11, and Moses Wright added 10.
For Dubai, Kabengele stood out with 21 points and 10 rebounds, Aleksa Avramovic contributed 16 points and 6 assists, Filip Petrusev scored 14, and Bacon finished with 12 points.
Zalgiris now holds a 7-4 record, with Dubai improving to 5-6.