By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Vladimir Lucic’s heroics helped FC Bayern Munich make history on Thursday, becoming the first German team to qualify for the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague playoffs in its modern history, after beating Zalgiris Kaunas 71-70 in Round 33.
It was an intense battle with Zalgiris taking charge in the fourth quarter, though a foul by Joffrey Lauvergne right before the final buzzer sent Vladimir Lucic to the free-throw line, then Lucic himself blocked Lauvegne’s attempt to save Zalgiris, as Bayern got this historic win.
“That was… in the last 10-12 days, we were starting to feel that we are close, close, close, but not close enough. We didn’t play a great game. They were light, with no pressure, and I am very happy for my players, for all my players. This is a historic date for German basketball, for Bayern. We made it”, said coach Andrea Trinchieri among other things, following the win.
Following Baskonia‘s loss to Efes earlier in the round, the Germans enter the playoffs zone in their fifth appearance in the competition, living just two tickets up for grabs for the upcoming final round of the regular season.
Multiple players scored in double digits for Andrea Trinchieri’s squad, as Lucic paced his team with 13 points and 6 rebounds, Jalen Reynolds tapped 12 points and Nick Weiler-Babb left the court with 11.
Already-eliminated Zalgiris had Thomas Walkup leading the way with 16 points, Joffrey Lauvergne posted 12 points and 6 rebounds, Nigel Hayes had 12 points and Lukas Lekavicius had 10 points.
Photo: EuroLeague