The Lithuanian center set a new personal best in postseason scoring
Donatas Motiejunas led the way for Monaco in crucial Game 2 win
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AS Monaco almost always turns to Donatas Motiejunas on its first offense of the game, and that was once again the case on Friday night. In Game 2 against Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, the 33-year-old scored a turnaround hook shot from the low post to give Monaco a 2-0 lead and result in the first cheer of the night from the Salle Gaston Medecin crowd.
Motiejunas went on to finish the night with a new career high in the postseason with 18 points, which was a team high, in a 93-88 win to even up the series. Having matched his previous high of 12 points in Game 1, Motiejunas quickly got down to business and finished the first quarter with 10 points in 6:56 minutes on the floor. He had the hot hand early and helped his team lead 31-21 at the end of the first 10 minutes.
He netted a further 8 points over the next three quarters, with Monaco going on to win 93-88 thanks to a dominant fourth quarter, but the Lithuanian once again showed why he is one of the leaders on this team. In the tough moments, the Monaco players knew that ‘D-Mo’ would be there, whether that was offering in the low post or playmaking from the center position.
“My teammates were finding me in open positions and I’m happy with that,” Motiejunas told EuroLeague TV afterward. “I’m happy to get this responsibility from the coach, to get this trust from my teammates. I know how to play basketball.”
Monaco has now won all three Game 2s that it has played, but the veteran big man knows that a tough test awaits when his squad travels to Istanbul for Games 3 and 4 next week.
“We’re going back to their home, so definitely it’s going to be hell, definitely it’s going to be a war,” he added. “We have some time to prepare, so we have to get to work.”