By Alex Molina/ info@eurohoops.net
In a historic night at the Palau Municipal d’Esports de Badalona, Rytas etched their name into the record books as the first Lithuanian team to capture the Basketball Champions League crown, overcoming AEK 92–86 in a thrilling overtime finale to Season X, powered by Ameresco SUNEL. The victory, witnessed by 10,372 fans, secured a massive €900,000 winner’s prize for the Vilnius club and extended their winning streak to seven games, while denying AEK the chance to become the first non-Spanish club to win multiple titles.
Saturday’s championship game began as a nightmare for Giedrius Zibenas’s squad. The Greek side utilized a suffocating defense to build what appeared to be an insurmountable lead, powered by Vasilis Charalampopoulos and the Most Valuable Player of the 2025-26 season, Frank Bartley IV. By the end of the first period, Bartley had tallied eight points, the most in a BCL title game opening quarter since 2022, eventually reaching the elite 300-point single-season milestone. Supported by James Nunnally, who became the first player to ever score 20 points off the bench in a Final, Dragan Sakota’s side entered halftime with a 17-point cushion. The deficit eventually widened to 20 points, threatening to maintain a perfect record against Lithuanian opponents in the Champions League.
However, Rytas, the league’s most efficient offense, averaging 90.5 points per game, refused to succumb to history. Despite eight of the previous nine finals being won by the team leading at halftime, the Lithuanian side launched a furious fourth-quarter rally. Jerrick Harding, who was held scoreless until late in the third period, exploded to finish with 16 points and 6 assists, becoming the first player in title game history to record a 15-point, 5-assist performance. He was joined in the comeback by veteran Speedy Smith, the only player with previous BCL Final experience, and a spectacular Simonas Lukosius, who also scored 23 points off the bench and set a new Final record by sinking seven three-pointers.
The momentum shifted decisively when 23-year-old Lukosius buried a three-pointer to tie the game at 80–80 with just 19.3 seconds remaining in regulation, forcing the first overtime in the competition’s ten-season history. In the extra period, Rytas completed the largest comeback in championship game history, shattering AEK’s defensive resolve. By reaching the 92-point mark, they concluded the campaign as only the second team ever to average over 90 points per game over a season.