On Saturday, the Liepāja team hopefully started the game against the titled Ventspils in the Latvian-Estonian joint basketball championship, but at the end they failed to protect the gained advantage, as a result of which Artūrs Visockis – Rubenis made his debut at the helm of the Kurzeme unit with a loss.
“Ventspils” won “Liepāja” with 92:91 (24:32, 21:19, 26:20, 21:20) guests, at the wheel of which Viscokis – Rubenis made his debut.
Last season, the specialist led the Ventspils team. This was the first game of the 2020/21 Latvian-Estonian championship.
The most productive in the ranks with 33 points and six rebounds was Māris Gulbis, 18 points and eight assists for Artūrs Ausis, while Kemerons Randls added 15 points.
In Liepāja team 24 points and eight balls under baskets for Ilya Gromov, but Roberts Bērziņš scored 15 points. Guntis Sīpoliņš threw one less.
“Kurzeme derby” started with a fierce fight, but Renārs Birkāns’ two-point throw soon led the home team with a 9: 4 lead. The Ventspils team was also able to take the lead with a slight advantage in the continuation of the quarter, but in the end, after Birkāns’ two-point throw and Sīpoliņš’s long throw, the result became 30:21 in favor of Liepāja.
At the beginning of the second quarter, the home team managed to get +9 (43:34), but after the first half, the advantage of “Liepāja” decreased to six points (51:45). In the third quarter, “Ventspils” attacked with more determination and also more often carried out the executed throws, as a result of which, after Maris Gulbs’ long shot, the guests achieved a minimal deficit – 61:62. Two minutes before the end of the third, Gulbja’s “threesome” had already reached a draw – 66:66, but Roberts Krastiņš answered with the same (71:71).
The game was similar in the last ten minutes, but most of the quarters were maintained by Liepaja residents. Less than four minutes before the end of the game, Artūrs Ausējs reached 84:83 with two “penalties”, but four seconds until the final whistle he threw the winning basket (92:91). Visockis – Rubenis immediately took a minute’s break, but Roberts Bērziņš did not realize the “triad” shortly afterwards.
Last season, the Liepāja team remained in the last place in the competition of 14 teams, while the Ventspils team was the fourth, but won the third place in the evaluation of domestic units.
In the inter-season “Liepāja” made drastic changes in the team – the main coach became Artūrs Visockis – Rubenis, who ran “Ventspils” in the previous season, but many new basketball players joined the team. This season, such well-known players in Latvia as Renārs Birkāns, Iļja Gromovs, Dāvis Geks, Adrianas Šnipks, Roberts Krastiņš, Guntis Sīpoliņš and others will be able to see such well-known players in the shirts of the wind city team. So far, only domestic players are included.
Meanwhile, the Ventspils team will be led by Ventspils resident Gints Fogels this season, but the club’s budget will be reduced by 56%. This has not prevented him from assembling a good team, which will include such basketball players as Artūrs Ausējs, Kristaps Mediss, Māris Gulbis, Andrejs Šeļakovs and Kristaps Ķilps. At the beginning of the season, there are also two Americans – Christopher Coffee and Kemeron Randls.
Last season, Ventspils celebrated quite convincing victories in both mutual games – 97:46 and 109: 80.
In another match of the day, the Latvian championship team “VEF Rīga” “Pafbet” won last year’s fiercest competitor “Ogri” in the Latvian-Estonian basketball championship.
“VEF Rīga” won “Ogri” with 81:63 (27:15, 27:18, 13:15, 14:15) guests, celebrating the victory in their first game of this season.
????????????????????????!
We start the season with success on the field, where we beat 81-63 with the result@BK_OGREcommand. ⚫️⚪️????
Great performance for Aigars Skele, who scored 19 points and gave 6 passes. pic.twitter.com/ZCdsYdW0oc
– VEF Rīga (@vefriga) October 3, 2020
Aigars Šķēle was the most productive in the Riga team with 19 points and six productive passes, while Michael Kaizers and Kristers Zoriks added another 13 points.
“Ogre” had 17 points and ten balls under the baskets for the experienced Kaspars Bērziņš, but Andre Volkers and Rinalds Sirsniņš stood out with 14 and 13 points, respectively.
After two and a half minutes, the “Vefieši” were already in the lead with 10: 0, but the first points in the “Ogre” team were scored by Rihards Zēbergs (3:10). “VEF Rīga” continued to fall due to the accuracy of Zorika and Šķēle, and closed the third with a 12-point lead – 27:15. Significantly, the “Vephis” were for the time in the lead with a 19-point lead (24: 5).
In the middle of the second quarter, Artis Ate made a long shot (38:21), but then Alexander Madsen and Skele also stood out, reaching 45:25. The Riga team slightly increased their lead by the end of the quarter, but the final ten minutes started with a result of 67:48 in favor of “VEF Rīga”. The guests also started the last leg of the game more successfully, but “Ogre” was not so far behind, however, it was also unable to regain the lost and suffered a convincing loss.
The Ogre team had the best season in the team’s history, because LIBL managed to win the second place just behind the “VEF Riga” team. At the end of the season, the units were awarded silver and gold medals, respectively.
Also this season, the Ogre team will be led by the former coach of “VEF Rīga” Nikolajs Mazurs, as well as the main forces of the previous season Rinalds Sirsniņš, Kristaps Dārgais, Kaspars Bērziņš, Renārs Magone, Rihards Zēbergs, Jānis Pozņaks, Jānis Antrops and others. as well as Americans Andre Volker and Jordan Eliot Lions.
Jānis Gailītis will lead the VEF Rīga team this season as well, but will include such national team players as Artis Ate, Mārcis Vītols and Aigars Šķēle. Four of the foreign legions will start the season in the Riga team – the previously acquainted Finn Alexander Madsen, as well as the Americans Michael Kaiser, Aizija Pinjeiro and Kail Olmens.
Last season, “VEF Rīga” won in both matches (88:70 and 82:71), and it was these successes that allowed us to take the first place in the tournament table.
From October 3 to December 5, 30 games between Latvian teams are planned. Meanwhile, seven Estonian teams will also play their mini-tournaments.
In the main tournament of the third season of LIBL, 13 teams are planned to hold a two-round tournament, after which there will be playoffs – a quarter-final series and a “Final Four” tournament.
13 teams will participate in the LIBL championship in the 2020/21 season – six Latvian units – “VEF Rīga”, “Ogre”, “Ventspils”, “Valmiera Glass” / “Vidzeme University College”, “University of Latvia” and “Liepāja”, as also seven Estonian teams – Tallinn “Kalev” / ”Cramo”, Rapla “Avis Utilitas”, “Parnu Sadam”, “University of Tartu”, Rakvere “Tarvas”, Tallinn “Kalev” / TLU and “TalTech”.
In the first Latvian-Estonian joint league tournament in the 2018/2019 season, Ventspils won 15 teams in both the main tournament and the Final 4, but the 2019/2020 season remained unfinished, ranking first in the main tournament, which was suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. occupying “VEF Rīga”, the second – “Ogre”, the third – “Kalev” / “Cramo” led by Robert Štelmaher and the fourth – “Ventspils”.
