Pieno Zvaigzdes vs. Jonava | Lithuania LKL – Oct. 11, 2021
After picking up victories in the King Mindaugas Cup 4 days ago, Pieno Zvaigzdes and Jonava meet in a very important domestic league fixture. Pieno started off the season poorly but is slowly bouncing back. Jonava has been the most pleasant surprise so far after getting promoted last season.
Hosts had a tough time in the league so far losing all four of their games but they had a very demanding schedule with games against heavyweights like Rytas and Zalgiris. However, schedule wasn´t the biggest reason why they were losing and struggled to score points. Their marquee signing American Josh Selby completely underperformed and didn´t live up to the expectations. Because of his inefficiency he was recently released as their coach stated that he wasn´t motivated to play in Lithuania.
It´s a short season so Pieno had to react quickly and found a replacement in Marques Townes who spent his last season in Estonia and Spain. He got his first real minutes couple of days ago against Dzukija in the cup and immediately made Pieno´s offense much better with 19 points and 6 assists. His team has some solid shooters and a quality frontcourt but they lacked a real point guard who can not only dictate the play but also score points.
That is exactly what they got with him so their offensive level should be much higher from now. After their best performance of the season in the cup four days ago they will be looking to get their first league win but newly-promoted Jonava will be a tough task.
Guests are having an excellent season. They managed to beat Lietkabelis and Dzukija with their only loss coming against Zalgiris. They made life very tough for the defending champions and kept the game close until the end but eventually lost in a dramatic ending. They´re entering today´s game after a good performance in the cup where they beat Prienai 85:81.
Even though they are debutants in the league, the quality of their roster should allow them to threaten the top teams and possibly even finish in top 4. To be competitive in the elite division they brought in experienced names like Juan Palacios and Emmanuel Lecomte who compliment their domestic players very well.
Betting pick
Both teams are entering this game in great offensive form. Pieno is a different team with their new import signing who is already making a huge impact on their offense which was very inefficient so far.
It will be tough for them to stop Jonava defensively. Guests have a team of all-around scorers and shooters with at least five players who can score double-digits. Both teams are looking to win this game amidst a very busy schedule so with their current form and style of play we expect a high-scoring first half.
Pick: 1st Half Total Over 77.5
Odds: 1.80
Bookmaker: bet365
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