The Tartu team takes revenge on “Ventspilij” and achieves a draw in the LIBL quarter-finals

Gundars Vētra | Photo: Estlat.com

On Wednesday, “Ventspils” suffered a loss in Tartu in the second match of the “Pafbet” Latvian-Estonian Basketball League (LIBL) quarterfinals. “Ventspils” lost 69:82 (19:18, 18:23, 18:24, 14:17) to “University of Tartu”/”Maks & Moorits” represented by Rinalda Mālmans and Dāvjas Rozīš, the result in the series up to two wins becoming 1- 1.

In the Ventspils team, Ishmael El-Amin collected 17 points and five rebounds, Linards Jaunzems scored 11 points, and Francis Oshie added ten rebounds to eight points. For the home team, Rozītis collected 18 points and ten rebounds, and Mālmanis – six points and five rebounds. Only Merts Rosenthal scored 24 points and Devin Harris added 11 points.

In a similar battle, the biggest advantage in the first half was achieved by the players of Ventspils after a three-pointer by Ronald Zakis, reaching 9:4. The hosts were more in the lead, who achieved the biggest advantage 55 seconds before the end of the half, when Mert Rosenthal made two free throws – 41:33. The Tartu basketball players did not allow the guests to play back, in the last quarter after Rosenthal’s two-point shot, they achieved the biggest advantage in the game – 78:57.

Ventspilnieki won the first match of the quarterfinal series with 103:69. The third game in the series will take place on April 5 at “Ventspils” field. “Ventspils” took fourth place in the main tournament with a balance of 20-10, while “University of Tartu”/”Maks & Moorits” (19-11) took fifth place.

In both games of the main tournament of this season, Ventspils won. First, they won away in overtime with 88:83, but at home they defeated their opponents with 92:63.

“Ogre” lost to Riga-based Ukrainian club Slobojansk “Prometey” at home with 82:90 (23:25, 19:22, 21:20, 19:23). On Monday, the place in the semi-finals was secured by “VEF Rīga”, which beat “Rīgas Zeļlias” 2-0 in the quarter-finals, while “Kalev”/”Cramo” of Tallinn defeated “Parnu Sadam” 2-0, also entering the semi-finals.

In addition to the Riga-based Ukrainian team Slobojanskas “Prometey” this season, “VEF Rīga”, “Ventspils”, “Liepāja”, “Ogre”, “University of Latvia”, “Valmiera Glass”/”Vidzemes Augstskola” and “Rīgas Zeļļi” are competing in the LIBL. Estonia is represented in LIBL by Tallinn “Kalev”/”Cramo”, “University of Tartu”/”Maks & Moorits”, “Parnu Sadam”, “Viimsi”, Rapla “Avis Utilitas”, Tallinn “TalTech”/”Optibet”, “Keila” /”Coolbet” and Tallinn’s “Kalev”/”Snabb”.

In the main tournament, the teams competed in a two-round tournament, after which the best eight got the right to participate in the playoffs. In the quarter-finals and semi-finals, the winners are determined in a best-of-two series, but in the final, one match will be played on the court of the team that was in the highest place in the main tournament.

The best men’s basketball clubs of Latvia and Estonia played in the joint championship for the first time in the 2019 season, when 15 teams participated in the competition. “Ventspils” basketball players became the first winners of the league in the final four tournament.

Last season, in the finals of the “Final 4” tournament, the basketball players of Slobojanska “Prometey” became the champions.