In a thriller that went down to the final shot, Zalgiris Kaunas improved to 2-0 in the standings by downing defending EuroLeague champion Fenerbahce Istanbul 84-81 in front of a sellout crowd at Zalgirio Arena on Friday.
Nigel Williams-Goss led the winners with 20 points. Sylvain Francisco added 18 while Moses Wright had 11.
Wade Baldwin paced Fenerbahce with 36 points, a new EuroLeague season high. Devon Hall added 12 while Talen Horton-Tucket had 10 for the guests, who dropped to 1-1.
Williams-Goss got Zalgiris off to a strong start, and Laurynas Birutis responded to Hall’s layup with a three-point play to make it 5-2. Williams-Goss continued to lead the hosts, knocking down back-to-back jumpers, but Khem Birch and Baldwin helped Fenerbahce close the gap to 9-7. Birutis then added a jump hook followed by an alley-oop slam, extending Zalgiris’s lead to 13-7. Nicolo Melli connected from beyond the arc, then Tarik Biberovic matched Williams-Goss’s floater with a driving layup. Williams-Goss, seemingly unstoppable, scored again, while Armando Bacot answered with a layup. Wright’s jumper pushed the hosts ahead at 19-14. Bacot scored inside, but Maodo Lo along with Azoulas Tubelis each got on the scoreboard before Baldwin brought Fenerbahce within striking distance at 23-20. Francisco and Wright each hit a triple to give Zalgiris a 29-20 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
Melli and Wright exchanged layups early in the second quarter. Onuralp Bitim drove to the basket for a score, and Baldwin answered Wright’s dunk with a rainbow jumper. Horton-Tucker knocked down a fadeaway shot, which was immediately matched by Williams-Goss with a driving layup. Dustin Selva capped a three-chance Zalgiris possession with a layup, followed by driving finishes from Hall and Francisco. Colson then trimmed the deficit to 39-36. Francisco found an open lane for an uncontested layup, forcing the visitors to call a timeout at 41-36. Baldwin split free throws, and Wright powered through traffic for a thunderous dunk, setting the score at 43-37 after 20 minutes.
Francisco set up Birutis for an alley-oop slam, found Sleva for a strong finish, and added free throws to give Zalgiris a 12-point lead at 49-37. Hall tried to shift momentum with a jump hook, followed by a wild driving basket from Horton-Tucker. Williams-Goss floated in a one-handed shot in the lane, and Baldwin responded with a jump hook and a close-range jumper to cut the deficit to 51-45. Horton-Tucker struck again, Francisco answered with a three-pointer, and Baldwin’s jumper kept Fenerbahce within reach at 54-49. Lo added a floater, then Francisco topped it with another triple. Tubelis improved Hall’s layup with a three-pointer of his own before striking again from deep to blow the game open at 65-51. Baldwin powered through for a dunk in traffic, closing the quarter at 65-53.
Francisco ignited the crowd with an acrobatic layup early in the fourth. Horton-Tucker answered, and Baldwin’s dunk cut the deficit to 67-57. Ulanovas kept Zalgiris afloat, but Baldwin hit free throws and fed Hall for a fast-break slam. Hall then found Baldwin for a transition triple, forcing a Zalgiris timeout at 69-64. Williams-Goss added free throws before Baldwin hit two more threes, making it 71-70 with under six minutes left. Hall drove to score, but Ulanovas and Francisco kept Zalgiris ahead, 74-72. Baldwin buried another three to give Fenerbahce its first lead, 74-75. Williams-Goss hit a floater, but Horton-Tucker tied it with free throws. Ulanovas nailed a triple, and Butkevicius bettered Baldwin’s jumper with his own three to make it 82-79 with 46 seconds left. Jantunen scored on a put-back before Williams-Goss hit free throws with 12.8 seconds remaining. He hit both attempts and Melli missed from beyond the arc second before the final buzzer.
