Lithuania’s journey to 2011 FIBA Under-19 World Championship glory (Part 2)
Game-3: Lithuania 111 – Canada 68
Lithuania used a dominating first half to rout Canada 111-68 in their third game of the preliminary round of Group-C, in the 2011 FIBA U-19 World Championship. Lithuania shot 56 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from the three-point as compared to Canada’s 36.1 and 25 percent respectively.
Point guard Vytenis Cizauskas led Lithuania with game-high 22 points together with five assists, two rebounds and one steal. During his 22 minutes stay on the court, Cizauskas made eight field goals out of his 11 attempts and finished four of four from the free throw line. Besides him, Jonas Valanciunas tallied 15 points, clutched nine rebounds and catered one assist for Lithuania.
Lithuania took the charge right from the start and rattled the Canadians with a 29-13 surge in the first quarter. They carried the same aggression in the second quarter and did not allow Canada to settle down. By the time the teams went into the locker room, the Lithuanians were in a very strong position at 61-28.
The Canadians finally showed some resistance after the break and restricted Lithuania to 22 points in third and 18 points in the fourth quarter. However, it only helped in making the final scores as little less overwhelming at 43 points.
Canada’s small forward Dyshawn Pierre was the only player in the roster, who scored in double-digit with 10 points. He also grasped nine rebounds on the night.
Game-4: Lithuania 71 – Serbia 54
Lithuania lost track, half way in the game, but bounced back in the final quarter as they knocked down Serbia 71-54 in a 1/8 Finals game of Group-F on July 4, 2011.
Lithuanians dominated Serbia from the floor and shot at 41.9 percent in contrast to a meagre 30.3 percent performance from the Serbs.
Jonas Valanciunas thumped game-high18 points and clutched 13 rebounds to achieve yet another game-winning double-double. Point guard Dovydas Redikas chipped in with 17 points, grabbed five rebounds and provided two assists.
Lithuanians were aggressive early and they completely choked the Serbian offense in the first quarter of the game, which ended with Lithuania leading by 19-8. After getting rattled by Lithuania in the first period, the Serbs got themselves together in the second quarter. They kept the offensive battery of the Lithuanians in check and by the time, the second period was over Lithuania was leading by 33-21.
After the break Lithuania lost their way. Serbia took advantage and rattled them 23-10 to make it a five point game (48-43), entering the final frame. With Serbia within striking distance, the Lithuanians bounced back into the game just when it was required. They nipped the Serbians surge in the final quarter countered to take the game away from them for good.
Aleksandar Cvetkovic led Serbia with his 15 points, three rebounds and one assist. Cvetkovic shot 46.2 percent from the field and 100 percent from the stripe. Petar Lambic and Nemanja Besovic also made 10 points each for Serbia.
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