"Neptūnas", which was unstoppable in overtime, took revenge on "Šlask" in the final period with a score of 20:4 - 103:87. Arnas Velička scored 22 points.
Klaipėda's Neptūnas (5-5) improved their position in the tournament table after another victory in the European Cup. In front of their fans, Gediminas Petrauskas' team, who impressively recovered from a 17-point deficit, defeated Wrocław's Šlask (4-6) 103:87 (16:30, 24:16, 24:19, 19:18, 20:4) after 45 minutes of play.
This was the first match in the second round of the competition for the Uostamiestis team. On September 30, they lost 85:95 in Poland.
With 3,5 minutes left in the fourth quarter, Rihards Lomažs put Neptūnas ahead with a two-pointer, and Arnas Beručka soon added a three-pointer – 81:76.
The teams traded points, Lomažas' shot kept Klaipėda's team ahead by 5 points (83:78), but Šlask, who did not retreat anywhere, restored the maximum intrigue with 26 seconds left, 83:83.
Arnas Velička missed, and with 1,1 seconds left, the visitors made a mistake when throwing the ball out of bounds. Beručka's shot from a distance went wide, sending the game into overtime.
At the start of extra time, Beručka, Vitalijus Kozys and Velička each hit a three-pointer, bringing the fans gathered at the Švyturys Arena to their feet (92:85) and confidently moving towards victory.
Finally, the Klaipėda team made 5 long-range shots in a stunning overtime and outscored their opponents with a 20:4 spurt.
As the first half got underway, the hosts missed three long shots and a 2:19 stretch, after which they had to try to hang on to the game with a 17-point deficit – 11:28. Having stabilized the situation, “Neptūnas”, led by Velička, who scored 9 points, approached 40:46 before the long break.
Klaipėda, who started the second half of the match with even greater energy, were already ahead 49:48 after a three-pointer by Mindaugas Girdžiūnas.
Neptūnas will host Gargždai in an LKL match on Saturday, and will continue their international campaign in Cluj-Napoca next Wednesday.