By Eurohoops team/info@eurohoops.net
Lokomotiv Kuban decimated Zalgiris Kaunas in the first half (53-17) and beat the Lithuanians 80-50 to secure their qualification to the next round.This was the sixth win for the hosts, who remained on top of group C (6-1), whereas the visitors suffered their fourth defeat (3-4).
For the winners, Evgeny Voronov was the top scorer with 14 points, as four more players were in double digits. On the other hand, Ian Vougioukas had 15 points and six rebounds for the losing squad, with Brock Motum adding 14 points and seven boards.
In the beginning, Lokomotiv made a great start and quickly earned a 10-point advantage (10-0), with Zalgiris making a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to four points (10-6). However, Giorgos Bartzokas’ team executed very well on both ends of the floor and ended the first quarter in front with a double score (28-14), behind an 18-8 run.
In the second quarter, the Russians were simply dominant. They conceded only three points, playing incredible defence, and made an 18-0 run to extend the lead to 30 points (46-16). Lokomotiv outscored their opponents 25-3 in the second quarter and closed the first half with a 36-point lead (53-17). In the second half, nothing changed significantly, as the Russians comfortably retained their advantage (65-25, 73-37) and claimed their easiest victory in the competition so far, with Zalgiris making one of the worst performances in the season and being unable to make a big come-back.