Valencia Basket fell to Zalgiris Kaunas 86-77 in a match at Zalgirio Arena. The Lithuanian team, leading in attack and defense in the EuroLeague, imposed its rebound dominance and solid defensive work. Despite the loss, Pedro Martínez's squad showed competitiveness in one of the league's toughest venues.
Valencia Basket could not overcome Zalgiris Kaunas, the EuroLeague's most in-form team, in a match played on November 7, 2025, at Kaunas's Zalgirio Arena. The final score was 86-77 in favor of the Lithuanians, who notched their seventh straight win.
Pedro Martínez, Valencia's coach, had noted beforehand that it was not the season's most worrying game: “Está muy bien si lo ganamos, y si perdemos, sigue la liga…”. His team remained competitive against a demanding crowd and a rival known for its balance, lacking big stars but excelling in collective effort.
Zalgiris, coached by Tomas Masiulis, halted Valencia's penetrations with aggressive defense, particularly under the basket thanks to Azuolas Tubelis. Sylvain Francisco, October's MVP and a former player trained by Martínez at Manresa, led the Lithuanian attack with poise. Valencia struggled with three-pointers but debuted Braxton Key in the EuroLeague and got defensive contributions from Isaac Nogués.
At halftime, the score was 38-35 for Zalgiris, after a stretch where Jean Montero steadied Valencia. In the third quarter, Sergio de Larrea tied it at 42-43, with Omari Moore challenging Moses Wright on rebounds, where Tubelis and Wright grabbed 18 between them. The fourth quarter was intense, with both teams trading blows, but Francisco returned with five minutes left to tip the scales. Jaime Pradilla held on, but Zalgiris's rebound control sealed the win.