VEF Rīga fell to a surprising 104-88 defeat against Viimsi in Sunday’s Latvian-Estonian Basketball League (LIBL) matchup.
The game concluded with quarter scores of 27-25, 18-14, 30-26, and 29-23 in favor of the Estonian side.
The visiting Riga side struggled to contain the hosts throughout the contest, falling behind after an initial lead and failing to recover. Viimsi, currently positioned 13th in the league standings, secured only their second win in 10 games, while VEF Rīga remains in second place with a 7-2 record.
This season, the LIBL features Latvian clubs “Latvijas Universitāte,” “Liepāja,” “Ogre,” “Rīgas ekselences juniori,” “Rīgas zeļļi,” “Valmiera Glass”/”Vidzemes Augstskola,” “Ventspils,” and “VEF Rīga,” alongside Estonian participants Keila “Basket,” Tallinas “Bigbank”/”Kalev,” “Keila,” “Parnu,” Tallinas “TalTech”/”Alexela,” “Tartu Universitāte”/”Maks & Moorits,” and “Viimsi.”
While VEF Rīga held the lead during the opening minutes, the hosts seized control by the end of the second quarter, establishing a six-point advantage by halftime at 45-39. The game shifted decisively in the third quarter when Viimsi orchestrated a 12-3 run, extending their lead to 13 points and eventually pushing the gap to 19 points. By the end of the third period, VEF Rīga faced a 10-point deficit.
Although VEF Rīga managed to trim the deficit to eight points in the fourth quarter following two three-pointers from Jēkaba Niedra, the team could not sustain the comeback. Foul trouble hindered the visitors’ rotation, as both Rihards Aleksandrovs and Caleb Asberry were forced to exit the game early.
The disparity in perimeter shooting drove the outcome. VEF Rīga converted only seven of 35 three-point attempts, a 20% success rate, while Viimsi connected on 13 of 30 shots from beyond the arc. The hosts also demonstrated efficiency at the free-throw line, hitting 27 of 31 attempts. Despite the loss, VEF Rīga shot 26 of 41 from the two-point range for a 63.4% success rate.
Jordan Sears led VEF Rīga with 23 points, while Asberry added 13. Matthew Rodgers and Rodrigo Būmeisters each contributed 11 points, with Būmeisters also recording nine rebounds. For Viimsi, Oliver Pere matched the game-high with 23 points, and Kārels Velbs added 22. Additional support for the hosts came from Urviks, who recorded 18 points and nine rebounds, and Jurtsenko, who added 15 points and eight rebounds.
VEF Rīga played without Mareks Mejeris and Luis Rodriguez, and Isuf Sanon remained unavailable for the lineup. Viimsi countered with a starting lineup of Vēlbs, Kūtiss, Urviks, Kokss, and Jurtsenko.
Following the loss, Rodrigo Būmeisters provided comments on the team’s performance via the club’s official social media channels, acknowledging the difficulties faced during the away fixture.
🎙️ Kapteiņa Rodrigo Būmeistera komentārs par zaudējumu izbraukumā pret “Viimsi” ⚫️⚪️🏀 https://t.co/YYQJ1ssGJw— VEF Rīga (@vefriga) November 8, 2026
The defeat continues a busy stretch for Latvian clubs in the joint league. VEF Rīga is scheduled to face Tartu Ülikool/Maks & Moorits next at the Team Sports Hall in Riga at 19:00, with the match broadcast on TV4 and Sportacentrs.com. The league season continues with a round-robin format, with the top eight teams advancing to the quarterfinals, culminating in the championship final on April 10, 2027.
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