Both players were at their best in Round 21
The Francisco and Butkevicius show brought joy back to Zalgirio Arena
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3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 21 of 34
Group Regular Season
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Zalgiris Kaunas is renowned for having some of the best fans in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, yet they arrived at Zalgirio Arena on Wednesday night having seen three straight defeats on their home floor and four successive losses overall. Sylvain Francisco and Arnas Butkevicius, however, ensured that this time the supporters could go happy after a 77-68 triumph over Virtus Segafredo Bologna.
Butkevicius certainly left his mark in the first quarter, recording 2 early steals, the second of which stopped an almost guaranteed bucket by Achille Polonara, who was alone under Zalgiris’s rim. When his deep three-pointer dropped, the hosts held a 16-4 advantage and the wind was in their sails, thanks in large part to the Lithuanian forward.
Needing a leader after a tough run that had seen Zalgiris lose to LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (72-78), Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (95-78), Olympiacos Piraeus (85-92) and Real Madrid (64-83), Butkevicius was determined to be that man. His hustle on both ends was leading to loud roars from the crowd, no more so than when he chased back to block Alessandro Pajola before then hitting a three-pointer down the other end just eight seconds later. At the break, he had 6 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals and 1 block, emphasizing his do-it-all nature.
Francisco, meanwhile, had 6 first-quarter points but didn’t add to his tally again until the third, when he started the second half with a bomb from downtown – his third from 4 attempts. He added another triple in the third frame, but – as EuroLeague and Zalgiris fans have become accustomed to – he really showed his quality in the final stages.
With his fifth three-pointer on the night early in the fourth, Francisco was finding get out of jail free cards for a Zalgiris offense that was starting to look stagnant. He also displayed his playmaking ability, driving to the rim but showing the patience needed to find teammate Alen Smailagic for a dunk. Inside the final 2:11 minutes, that is when Francisco really stood up for Zalgiris.
Virtus was looking confident at 70-66 and Zalgiris found itself in the penalty, but Francisco showed great determination to lock in on Matt Morgan and block the guard’s shot, with the ball rebounding off the Virtus player and giving possession back to the hosts. At the other end, Francisco danced with Morgan before draining a mid-range jumper to put Zalgiris 72-66 ahead. But he wasn’t stopping there.
Butkevicius almost put the win on ice with another deep three-point shot, but the ball bounced in and out, leaving the score 72-68 entering the final minute. Even if nerves could have set in, Francisco stayed ice-cold by driving past Andrejs Grazulis and scoring a layup with 40 seconds remaining to give Zalgiris a 74-68 edge, with Butkevicius and Francisco then converting free throws to secure the 77-68 victory – Zalgiris’s first of 2025 and first since December 17.
“I know we lost a couple of games, especially here. I think we fixed what we’re supposed to do. I think we were more locked in and made right decisions [compared] to other games,” Francisco told EuroLeague TV afterward.
Certainly, with Butkevicius and Francisco stepping up at different points, Zalgiris got a taste of the winning feeling once more – something the fans more than deserved for their passionate, continuous support.