Rebounding Zalgiris subdues Virtus on the road in Bologna 11

Zalgiris Kaunas ground out a 87-77 win at Virtus Segafredo Bologna thanks to a dominant performance in the paint at both ends of the court.

Ignas Brazdeikis and Roland Smits paced the visitors with 17 points each, Arnas Butkevicius added 13 and new signing Isiah Taylor chipped in with 10 to overpower Virtus, whose playmaker Milos Teodosic went unrewarded for a majestic solo effort of 21 points and 12 assists. Semi Olejeye, who had 11 points, was the only other home player in double figures, with Zalgiris racking up 38 rebounds against 24 by Virtus.

Zalgiris improved to 10-8, while Virtus dropped to 8-10.

Led by Brazdeikis the Lithuanian team made a flying start as it romped into a 20-6 lead in the first quarter, with the hosts struggling to make shots against a robust visiting defense that stifled Virtus with aggressive half-court pressure.

The introduction of Teodosic, who came off the bench, revived Virtus and the Italian side gradually started to slash the deficit as the playmaker mixed long-range shooting with some delightful assists, leading to a pair of spectacular dunks from Ismael Bako and Mam Jaiteh. Zalgiris was able to stay ahead and carry a 40-36 lead into the locker room at halftime as Virtus simply had no reply for its rival in the paint, with Smits and towering center Kevarrius Hayes subduing the opposition.

It looked like Virtus might swing the game after a determined fightback, largely thanks to the inspired Teodosic. The 35-year-old seemed to roll back the years as he dished out assists like confetti, while he also nailed a flurry of long-range shots to give Virtus its first lead of the night late in the third quarter, 59-58. The two teams headed into the final 10 minutes all square, 60-60, before Taylor, who joined Zalgiris from Anadolu Efes Istanbul last week, came up big early in the fourth with 5 successive points which restored the visiting team’s lead.

Every time Virtus threatened to turn the tide in the home stretch, Zalgiris replied with a three-pointer or a tough shot inside the paint, while Teodosic finally ran out of steam at the other end as he missed a crunch three-pointer and committed a couple of turnovers. It was plain sailing for Zalgiris in the dying minutes, with Virtus unable to force a final twist and the visitors came out on top thanks to some cool free-throw shooting.