U18 Zalgiris Kaunas grabbed a hard-fought 87-82 victory over U18 Pole France INSEP in a thrilling overtime battle on Thursday.

In a game of two halves, INSEP was superior before the break, but Zalgiris bounced back to secure a 73-63 lead with 4 minutes to go. A late run by the French side sent the duel to overtime, where the Lithuanians prevailed to win the thriller.

Dominykas Grunkis recorded a game-high 28 points, having gone a sublime 6-for-7 from deep. Dovydas Buika netted 24, including a huge triple that put the game to bed, with Kajus Mikalauskas bagging 12 points, 5 of which were scored in overtime.

Nathan Soliman paced INSEP with 15 points, Hugo Yimga Moukouri had 15, Noa Kouakou-Heugue registered 14 and Cameron Houindo added 10.

INSEP turned its 7 offensive boards in the first quarter into 9 second-chance points, taking a 14-22 advantage after 10 minutes. Inside dominance allowed the French side to open a double-digit lead, but a 7-2 run late in the second quarter brought Zalgiris within 33-39 at halftime.

A 11-0 run fueled by Buika, who scored 9 in that stretch, gave the Lithuanians their first lead of the game, 46-43. What followed was an exchange of blows that saw Zalgiris maintain a 57-54 edge heading into the closing quarter.

Then, Zalgiris fired on all cylinders from beyond the arc to open a 71-61 lead. But Grunkis fouled out with 02:46 remaining and INSEP responded with a 14-4 surge, sending the game to overtime. The clash turned into a back-and-forth affair, with Buika nailing a dagger three to make it 86-81, practically finishing the game off.