Coach Ettore Messina asked for a better defensive game in Kaunas, after the Fenerbahce loss two days earlier. Olimpia responded, winning 69-64, holding Zalgiris to 42 percent from the field and just six three-pointers. It was win number 18 for the season, the record improved to 18-10 and it was the 8th road win of the EuroLeague season. Olimpia led basically from the tip-off through the end, but every time it tried to get away, Zalgiris responded. When it came within two late in a defensive battle in the fourth quarter, Kevin Punter score on a mid-range jumper, than Shavon Shields completed a monumental effort and secured the win from the line. He finished with 23 points and a terrific defense. He held Grigonis scoreless in the third quarter and to six points in the crucial second half, he also mounted the guard on Lekavicius when he was on fire late in the game, made a couple of great defensive plays switching over Joffrey Lauvergne.

Kevin Punter hit the ground running, scoring 12 first half points, then Zalgiris’ defense adjusted, but he had a 4-assist effort on top of a clutch jumper late in the game. Gigi Datome also had a clutch three from the corner. And Kyle Hines was everywhere on the floor. He scored 10 points, grabbed seven rebounds and made two huge blocks at the rim. But Coach Messina pointed out at the end to Michael Roll: “We were playing without our starting point-guard, Malcolm Delaney, and Roll did a fantastic job at both ends of the floor.” “We gave up 100 points in our last game against Fenerbahce – Shavon Shields said at the end -, so we knew that defense is the key. Everybody made plays. We were moving the ball and getting shots and getting stops, so it was a whole team effort, which helped us win.”

Olimpia led by as many as ten points a different juncture of the game, and every time Zalgiris responded and came back. In the end, Olimpia finished better. “We beat a very, very good team. In my opinion – Coach Messina said -, one of the best-coached teams in all the league. They are very disciplined, they execute well on offense with a lot of movement. Defensively, they are aggressive for 40 minutes and they force turnovers. I think we made some very good plays down the stretch, but our defense in the second half was, I think, at the level that needed to be for a team that wants to be in the playoffs.”