The Wolves of Vilnius walked off the court in their final BKT EuroCup game this season as victors, securing a huge upset win in London’s Copper Box Arena. Fantastically supported by a raucous and loud Lithuanian community in the farewell match of their debut season in the 2nd most prominent basketball tournament in Europe – the Wolves defeated the London Lions and scored their eighth victory in Group A – 80:85 (23:24, 16:21, 19:21, 20:21).
With 8 wins, the Lithuanian club finished in 7th place in Group A and remained just outside of the playoffs. Meanwhile, the London team, having suffered 6 losses, ended the group stage in third place and will continue the fight for the cup.
The guests started the match strong, led by team captain Regimantas Miniotas’ inspired play to secure the lead early 12:7. Late in the first quarter, the Lions managed to tie the score (14:14) with 3 minutes left to play, but could not overtake the Wolves. Tre’Shawn Thurman then hit a pair of long shots that kept the Vilnius team in front with a slim lead – 23:24.
Christian Mekowulu stepped up big for the Wolves in the second quarter. In his six minutes of play, the center-forward scored 11 points which allowed the Vilnius-based squad to build an 8-point lead, 38-30. A few more minutes later, the guests kept the advantage at 43-34 after Jeffery Taylor’s bucket. However, the London team managed to reduce the deficit to 6 points before halftime.
After the break, the uneven game of both teams continued. Early on, the Wolves once again extended their advantage to 9 points, but after a couple of minutes, the Lions responded with a successful run and came within striking distance of just 4 points (46:50). A minute later, the coach of the London team called for a timeout to regroup, as the Wolves’ lead ballooned to 11 after R.Miniotas’ free throw – 57:46. However, the end of the 3rd quarter was more favorable for the hosts, as they managed to chip away at the deficit with the Wolves still slightly ahead 64:60.
Much to the delight of the home fans, Josh Sharma finally put the Lions ahead 69-67 at the start of the final canto. From there, there were multiple lead changes in the middle of the fourth quarter. It was from here when Kristupas Žemaitis ignited the Wolves’ offense – hitting a couple of extremely clutch three-pointers which allowed some breathing room for the Vilnius team – 80:75. J. Taylor hit two free throws with less than a minute and a half to play to up the Wolves lead by six points, 84-78. In the dying seconds of the game, the London players tried to salvage the win with long shots, but to no avail.
BC Wolves: Jeffery Taylor and Christian Mekowulu 18 each, Kristupas Žemaitis 12, Garrison Brooks and Regimantas Miniotas 11 each, Vaidas Kariniauskas 8, Tre’Shawn Thurman 6, Vitalijs Kozys 1. Arnas Beručka and Eigirdas Žukauskas played but were both scoreless, while Rasheed Sulaimon did not appear on the court.
London Lions: David Nwaba and Matthew Morgan scored 16 points each.
