Liepāja Lose 56-98 to Euroleague Club in Baltic League Game

Liepāja's women's basketball team (LSSS) lost 56-98 (10-30, 20-18, 8-29, 18-21) to Lithuanian club Kibirkštis Vilnius in a Women's Baltic Basketball League game at the Liepāja Olympic Centre on Saturday, 24 October. Kibirkštis also compete in the Euroleague, Europe's top women's club basketball competition, and this was their ninth win of the season in official games.

Before the Baltic League main round, Kibirkštis beat teams from Poland and Hungary in Euroleague qualifying. They then opened the main round with wins over the champions of Greece and France.

How the game unfolded

The Vilnius side built a big early lead. When the live stream on YouTube began in the 16th minute, the visitors led 41-15. Until then, Vilnius's frontcourt had set the tone: Giedre Labuckiene and Naja Becker controlled the area under the basket, while Gabija Meškonytė, a former player of Riga's TTT team, shot accurately from mid-range and long distance.

Liepāja fought back, and the halftime score was 30-48. Marta Ploriņa and Maija Aploka kept the opponents from getting comfortable, while Ance Kočetkova, Ksenija Petrova, Dārta Veidere and Nikija Mikāle each added a three-pointer.

The gap in scoring stayed in place throughout the game. Vilnius dominated the free-throw line, scoring 58 points to the hosts' 12. Liepāja made 8 of 26 three-point attempts, while the visitors made 5 of 21. In the second half Liepāja hit fewer long-range shots, and Vilnius's lead grew.

Top scorers

For Liepāja, Aploka scored 14, Ploriņa 11 and Petrova 10. Kočetkova added 9. For Vilnius, Meškonytė led with 22 points, Labuckiene scored 13 and Becker 11.

Vilnius head coach Vilius Stanišauskas rested American sharpshooter Nausia Woolfolk and centre Daugilė Ūsė. Anna Makurat played her first game in the tournament. She previously played for Gdynia, a team coached by Gundars Vētra, and earlier represented the US university team UConn. Liepāja's coach is Elvis Brokāns.