Zalgiris Kaunas rallied to beat Valencia Basket 76-80 at La Fonteta in Round 10 on Friday, as it recorded its sixth win of the season. The hustle and aggressiveness that Zalgiris showed were key factors in it emerging with the victory.
Extra hustle paid off for Zalgiris against Valencia
Zalgiris outrebounded Valencia by 32-37 and did a really good job at boxing out. Valencia finished the game with just 9 offensive rebounds, while Zalgiris grabbed as many as 27 boards. In other words, Zalgiris pulled down 75% of all the rebounds under its own rim. It was a team-oriented effort, as 9 players grabbed at least 1 defensive rebound, and only two players – Keenan Evans and Tyler Cavanaugh – had 4 defensive boards.
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At the same time, Zalgiris showed much more energy in the game, which allowed Kazys Maksvytis's team to draw 25 fouls, while it gave up just 17. That eight-foul difference allowed Zalgiris to go to the foul line more often, and the guests' accuracy did the rest. Zalgiris finished the game a record of 26-of-30 from the free-throw line (86.7%). Valencia, meanwhile, downed 10-of-13 foul shots (76.9%). In the last minute of the game, Zalgiris team captain Edgaras Ulanovs hit 4-of-4 to put the victory on ice.