Riga's Zelli rout Keila KK in Latvian–Estonian Basketball League

Riga's Zelli beat Estonia's Keila KK 103–70 on Saturday in the Latvian–Estonian Basketball League, a regional club competition. The result came after a recent heavy defeat for the Riga side. It was their sixth win in six games, so they share first place in the standings with VEF Riga and Valmiera Glass/ViA. Keila KK have two wins and four losses and are tenth.

How the game went

The hosts opened with a 7–0 run, but the visitors cut the gap to one point (8–9). Zelli then restored their lead, and after a shot by Klavs Cavars it reached 11 points (21–10). They won the first quarter 25–18.

In the second quarter the visitors came within three points (29–26), but Zelli answered with a 12–2 run and led by 13 (41–28). The first half ended 52–39. During this stretch Zelli coach Roks Kondratavics was penalised for disagreeing with a referee's decision, and Toms Skuja received a technical foul.

Zelli opened the third quarter with a 15–2 run and reached a 31-point lead (78–47). Late in the quarter Skuja picked up a second technical foul and was ejected, and Tony Perkins also received a technical foul. The visitors trimmed the deficit to 78–53 by the end of the period.

In the fourth quarter younger players Ritvars Nikolajevs and Kristers Kikusts got more court time. The lead stayed between 26 and 29 points. Rolands Sulcs, after scoring on a three-point play, got into a confrontation with an opponent and was given an unsportsmanlike foul. Nikolajevs scored the team's 100th point and then hit another shot to set the final score.

Top performers

Six Zelli players scored at least 10 points. Tomas Talcis led with 15, making five of six shots. Ben Shungu recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 assists. Vols added 13, while Cavars and Perkins each had 12. For the visitors, Johannes Kirsipu top-scored with 14.

Quarter scores: 25–18, 27–21, 26–14, 25–17.