Hamburg’s cause was certainly not helped by the absence of two of its biggest bodies, Seth Hinrichs and Lukas Meisner, who have combined for an average of 8.5 rebounds per game this season. Joventut took full advantage to totally dominate the battle of the boards, claiming 46 rebounds to just 31 for Hamburg.

Joventut dominates the boards

It was a real team effort with 11 different players taking rebounds, led by Ante Tomic and Vladimir Brodziansky with 8 apiece. Joventut also used the ball well, dishing 25 assists from 9 different players led by 5 from Pau Ribas, the only visiting player without a rebound.

Balanced Lokomotiv too much for Lietkabelis, 90-62

Errick McCollum and Darius Thompson both scored 15 points to pace five Lokomotiv scorers in double figures. Stanislav Ilnitskiy poured in 14 points and Andrei Martiuk and Vladislav Emchenko both pitched in 11 points with Martiuk also grabbing 11 rebounds. Lietkabelis saw its two-game winning streak end in falling to 5-6 despite Djordje Gagic scoring 15 points and Panagiotis Kalaitzakis tallying 12 points and 7 rebounds.

Thompson opened the scoring for the hosts and Martiuk scored a basket and set up Alan Williams as Lokomotiv jumped ahead 6-0. Lietkabelis needed more than 3 minutes to score before Kaspars Berzins made a layup. Thompson added a three-pointer and layup to push the lead to 11-4. Lokomotiv had its problems with Gagic, who netted 6 points to get Lietkabelis within 14-12. McCollum’s jumper had Lokomotiv up 16-12 after 10 minutes.

Dovydas Giedratis’s jumper started the second quarter for Lietkabelis, but the Lithuania side’s offense dried up while Ivan Paunic hit a three-pointer in a 9-0 run for Lokomotiv in building a 25-14 lead. Kalaitzakis ended a 4-minute scoreless drought with a three-point play. The Greek youngster added a free throw and a three-pointer off an unsportsmanlike foul to make it 28-25. Martiuk came out of a Lokomotiv timeout with an inside score and Emchenko converted an and-one to increase the lead to 33-27. Kristupas Zemaitis answered with two baskets, but the hosts scored the final 5 points of the half to lead 38-31 at the break.

After McCollum and Gagic swapped scores, Thompson and Emchenko both converted three-point plays and Ilnitskiy and Emchenko hit triples to increase the margin to 52-37. Lietkabelis tried to get back into the game from long range as Giedraitis, Zemaitis and Vytenis Lipkevicius all drained three-pointers, but only trimmed the gap to 57-48. Lokomotiv finished the quarter with the final 8 points - including Ilnitskiy’s three-point play - to lead 65-48 after 30 minutes.

The surge continued in the final frame with Thompson and Ilnitskiy hitting triples as the margin swelled to 73-49. Gabrielius Maldunas scored for the visitors, but Martiuk and McCollum tallied at the other end and all doubt was over. Lokomotiv’s 19-year-old talent Abramo Canka provided a late highlight by hitting a three-pointer with 66 seconds left for his first points in the EuroCup.

Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar v Lietkabelis Panevezys (2022-01-26T16:30:00.000Z)

Errick McCollum - Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar (photo Fedor Aebor - Lokomotiv) - EC21

One of the few bright spots for Lietkabelis Panevezys was the play of Panagiotis Kalaitzakis. The Greek player struggled with his shooting, making just 3 of 12 shots for 12 points but he grabbed 7 rebounds to go with 4 assists and 2 steals while drawing 5 fouls for an index rating of 18. 

Kalaitzakis does other things to help

The 23-year-old had PIRs of 18 for back-to-back games after a six-game stretch in which he only reached that mark once - a PIR of 19 against Joventut Badalona in Round 6.

Panagiotis Kalaitzakis - Lietkabelis Panevezys (photo Fedor Aebor - Lokomotiv) - EC21

Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar’s efforts were assisted greatly by strong showings from two youngsters. Andrei Martiuk collected his first double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds - 8 of them offensive - to go with 2 assists for a performance index rating of 17. 

Youngsters Martiuk, Emchenko come through for Lokomotiv

The 21-year-old forward set a new personal best in rebounds; his previous high was 7 rebounds. The 22-year-old Emchenko tallied 11 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals for a PIR of 14. He set two career bests - bettering his previous highs of 7 points and 6 PIR.

Andrei Martiuk - Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar (photo Fedor Aebor - Lokomotiv) - EC21

Lietkabelis Panevezys came into the game outrebounding its opponents by 4.9 rebounds per game this season. Lokomotiv would have none of that, grabbing 47 rebounds compared to just 33 for Lietkabelis and taking the offensive rebounds 15 to 8, which led to an 18-9 advantage in second-chance points for the hosts. 

Telling numbers - Lokomotiv controls the glass

Lietkabelis also could not get into any shooting rhythm, especially from long range, hitting just 4 of 19 three-pointers (21.1%). The visitors also made only 40.5% of their two-pointers.

Darius Thompson 2- Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar (photo Fedor Aebor - Lokomotiv) - EC21

This is what the protagonists of the game had to say after such a close deal down the stretch.

Post-Game Quotes: Lokomotiv 90-62 Lietkabelis


#### Branko Maksimovic, Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar

“We really played well. Maybe at some times, we lost a little control. We made a game plan for their offensive rebounds and our turnovers. They only had 9 offensive rebounds and we only had 9 turnovers. We shared the ball very well; we had 21 assists. That means we played as a team on offense. That was the key. Their team has a lot of potential. It’s not just their two main guys. But we have more potential. Our young guys needed to step forward and take responsibility and show their quality on the court. This is very important for us: for everybody to take one step forward and take responsibility for great assists, great defense, great shots. That made our team stronger.”


#### Nenad Canak, Lietkabelis Panevezys

 “First of all, we gave them too many offensive rebounds. We allowed too many and-ones. That means we played very softly. There were six or seven times when they scored two-plus-one. We were very soft today. We tried to do something with some different types of defense. It didn’t work. I can say that’s on me. But we played without energy.”


#### Vladislav Emchenko, Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar

“Congratulations to the Loko family: team, coaches, supporters. We were ready for this game. We have a couple of players who were out with injuries and we had to change our game. Lietkabelis also had some players who were out. The coaches did a good job preparing a plan for the game. We started with good defense and shared the ball on offense. And this was the result."

Djordje Gagic - Lietkabelis Panevezys (photo Fedor Aebor - Lokomotiv) - EC21

Gran Canaria will make some adjustments to its lineup against Promitheas Patras due to the injury to John Shurna.

Keys to victory: Gran Canaria vs. Promitheas

The forward leaves a void in terms of scoring, rebounding and leadership and Miquel Salvo, who comes off a great game against Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana with 9 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, will continue to see an increased role in his absence. Salvo’s production could prove vital again this week.

Promitheas is last in the EuroCup in scoring with 71.9 points per game and is one of only four teams shooting below 50% on two-pointers. It won’t get easier this week against Gran Canaria, which is second with 9.2 steals per game. The visitors must play aggressively against Gran Canaria and take good care of the ball. If they can match the hosts’ tempo and shoot better, Promitheas could be in a position to end its losing streak.

Gran Canaria v Promitheas Patras (2022-01-26T20:00:00.000Z)

A.J. Slaughter has stood out as one of Gran Canaria’s leaders ever since he joined the team midway through last season and he has averaged 11.3 points in 41.7% three-point shooting, 3.9 assists and 1.1 steals this season.

Marquee matchup: Gran Canaria’s Slaughter vs. Promitheas’s Ray

Kendrick Ray is Promitheas Patras’s leading scorer this season with 14.2 points plus 3.2 assists and 1.0 steals per game. They are both combo-guards who depending on the situation can be go-to scorers or playmakers for others. This week they will pit their skills against each other in one of the most important matchups in this game. A big game for either player could make the difference on Wednesday.

The teams at the top and bottom of Group B will meet when Gran Canaria hosts Promitheas Patras on Wednesday in the final game of Round 11.

Gran Canaria looks to keep share of group lead when it faces Promitheas

Gran Canaria (7-2) is tied for the group lead despite playing one game less than the other two teams with seven wins. Promitheas (2-7) is last in the standings, but is only two wins from sixth place and has a game at hand. Gran Canaria has won three in a row, though Coach Porfi Fisac’s men have suffered their only two losses thus far at home. Promitheas, which has dropped four straight games, is 1-3 on the road this season. Dylan Ennis scored 20 and John Shurna posted a double-double to lead Gran Canaria to an 81-85 road win in Patras when they met in Round 2 in October.