Rimas Kurtinaitis’ men failed to create a miracle in the packed “Turkcell Basketball Development Center” arena.
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In a one-sided match, the European vice-champion Turkey dominated from the first minutes and essentially decided the winner of the game before the long break.
In the first quarter, Lithuanian basketball players were sent to a knockout by Cedi Osman, in the second – Omer Yurtseven, and after two quarters Ergin Ataman’s pupils already had a 21-point lead (55:34).
The difference between the teams grew even after the long break, giving no hope for victory to about 100 fans dressed in green.
The Turks successfully hunted Marekas Blaževičius, who returned to Kauno “Žalgiris” this summer, in “two against two” situations and back-to-the-basket play, and before the last 10 minutes of the match, the Lithuanian team’s deficit had already reached an indecent 28-point mark.
“As of today, we are inferior to the Turks both in height and physically. The game showed that too. They were faster, stronger. Unfortunately, we are what we are. I have no complaints about the team because we played to the maximum, as we could. Well, we need to focus on Monday’s game,” said Rimas Kurtinaitis after the duel.
| Place | Team | Wins | Points |
| 1. | Turkey | 7-0 | 14 |
| 2. | Serbia | 5-2 | 12 |
| 2. | Italy | 5-2 | 12 |
| 4. | Lithuania | 3-4 | 10 |
| 5. | Iceland | 3-4 | 10 |
| 6. | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 3-4 | 10 |
In this match, three basketball players made their official debut for Lithuania. They are Dominykas Stenionis, Justas Furmanavičius, and Augustas Marčiulionis.
How much could nervousness have tripped up R. Kurtinaitis’ men?
“Yes, many of our players do not have much experience in matches of this level. Well, we saw a bad start. The situations were not bad, but we didn’t score. Well, of course, nervousness. I have no doubt. But we have to deal with this nervousness. If we want to qualify for the World Championship, we have to handle it,” said R. Kurtinaitis.
The physical double defense of the Turkish basketball players became a headache for the team leader Ąžuolas Tubelis, who this summer averaged 32 efficiency points in five friendly and official matches with the national team jersey, but finished the duel in Istanbul with only 5 efficiency points.
Ą. Tubelis scored 7 points (1/3 two-pointers, 0/1 three-pointers, 5/6 free throws), grabbed 6 rebounds, stole 2 balls, blocked a shot, but made 7 turnovers and watched the last 12 minutes of the match from the bench.
“We saw that they prepared for the game, they know who Ąžuolas is. They defended Ąžuolas, jumped triple several times when Ąžuolas wanted to drive. They were prepared, so it was quite difficult for Ąžuolas to play,” said R. Kurtinaitis.
Why was it impossible to adapt to the recurring mistakes of Ą. Tubelis?
“I don’t know, maybe you should ask Ąžuolas. It’s normal when a team has one leader whom everyone knows. Opponents focus on him, so it’s hard to play,” said the national team coach.
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This is the third time in the last four matches that the national team has conceded at least 50 points before the long break.
Does this dictate the current roster?
“Yes, this is our capability. But we can improve it. We conceded a lot in all the friendly matches, so apparently these are our capabilities,” said R. Kurtinaitis.
What does the team currently lack – a good defender or a tall player who defends well?
“The national team lacks a lot, but I don’t want to complain. I am grateful to the men for coming, grateful for their fighting spirit, for the desire to play. The possibilities were what they were. I think we will sort things out and fight with the Bosnians in a couple of days,” said R. Kurtinaitis.
The national team strategist listed things that must be fixed before the match with Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“A lot needs to be done – one-on-one defense, rebounds, what we wanted earlier. What worries me the most are childish mistakes. We make about 17 mistakes, and about 9 of them are not even basketball mistakes. We emphasize these things, but we need to fix them,” said R. Kurtinaitis.
After this defeat, the Lithuanian team shares 4th-6th places in the J group of the qualifiers with Iceland and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
To secure a place in the world championships, R. Kurtinaitis’ team will likely have to win all the remaining five matches, and already this coming Monday, the representatives of Bosnia and Herzegovina will visit Vilnius.
“I don’t want to talk about five matches. We need to win the upcoming game,” said the national team leader, pushing aside probability theory.
What makes one believe that the Lithuanian team will create a miracle and catch the almost missed world championship train?
“I believe in the men,” said R. Kurtinaitis. “We pursue our goal, we go forward and don’t think about five matches ahead. We only think about the upcoming game. We knew the strength of the Turks. We tried, it didn’t work. We know the strength of the Bosnians. We will try to fight at home.”
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