For the guests, 19 points and six rebounds were collected by Aizeya Miles, who earned five points, Roberto Galinat scored 15 points, Amin Stevens and Adam Ariels scored 13 points each, Dori Sahar scored 12 points, and Roi Huber scored ten points each, who also had five assists. , and Kendall McCallum, who also had eight assists and five rebounds.
The match started with a moment of silence dedicated to the memory of Jānis Timmas.
After 9-7 in favor of the Riga team, the visitors, who hit four of the first seven long shots, scored eight points in a row, after Amin Stevens’ two-point shot, they took a 15-7 lead.
After two accurate free throws by Roi Huber, the guests achieved the largest lead up to that point – 26:15. However, by the end of the quarter, “Vefians” played back seven points.
In the second quarter, the home team continued their pursuit, Dairis Bertāns equalizing the result with a long shot in the 13th minute – 33:33.
The visitors played better at the end of the half, ending the half with a four-point advantage – 48:44.
Firing it away on a d̷a̷i̷l̷y̷ Dairis basis, ’cause he’s ON FIRE 🔥#BasketballCL I @vefriga pic.twitter.com/eeunZxk575
— Basketball Champions League (@BasketballCL) December 17, 2024
In the second half, “Maccabi” continued to make excellent long shots, after long shots by Dori Sahar and Aizeja Miles in the 26th minute, the advantage of the guests reached 18 points – 68:50.
In the 28th minute, Sahar made two free throws and increased the lead to 19 points – 74:55.
The home team finished the game without “VEF Rīga” head coach Mārtiņas Gulbja, who received two points at the end of the third quarter and left the team’s bench.
In the continuation of the match, the home team was able to reduce the points deficit by making a 15:2 breakthrough in the fourth quarter, during which four “VEF Riga” players made a long shot, closing to 77:81 in the 35th minute after Vyacheslav Bobrov’s two-point shot.
After an eight-point breakthrough, “VEF Rīga” tied the game two minutes and 27 seconds before the end of the match after Isuf Sanon’s long shot – 87:87.
After Bertan’s long shot, the Riga team even took the lead with 90:89, then tried to end the regular period with a draw in order to reach the necessary eight-point advantage in the sum of the two matches in overtime, but to no avail.
