TSU defeated Olimpi and advanced in the standings
In the match of the Super League favorites, the team of Tbilisi State University defeated Olimpi- 83:76 (Statistics). Both teams lacked players due to injuries, although Olimpi had more serious loss. Davit Rogava’s team lacked the entire back line of the starting five: members of the national team Givi Baqradze and Kakha Jintcharadze, as well as legionnaire Kendrick Thompson.
As for the university team, they lacked one and a prominent player in the entire Super League: the main point-guard of the national team, Giorgi Tsintsadze. The reduction of any basketball player is a big disadvantage for TSU, who has 9 players in the line-up and moreover, the absence of the main driving force of the team was a big headache for them.
Tsintsadze’s injury is a long-term and he will not be able to help either TSU or the national team for the next 6-8 months. Leqso Lapanashvili plays the team in a different style, where the leader is American legionnaire Lovell Cabbil. In the first round, when TSU defeated Dinamo, Cabbil scored 34 points, and his share in today’s victory was also solid – 29 points, 8 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 assists.
Olimpi did not give up easily. Rogava’s team played especially well in the first half and even led periodically. At the last second, Abdulai Bundu scored a two-pointer and the Olympians took the lead before the big break – 49:47. In the 3rd period, TSU strengthened defense and shifted its focus to the perimeter. They regained the lead thanks to the long-range shots and quick breakthroughs. TSU won the third period 19:12 and advanced by 5 points before the last quarter.
In the final period, the university team increased the advantage by 15 points thanks to the effectiveness of Lovell Cabbil, young Levan Kvartskhava and another American legionnaire, Darrell Owens, and decided the fate of the meeting in favor of themselves. Cabbil had 29 points, Owens scored -15. Kvartskhava had 12 and Ivane Megeneishvili collected 10. Bundu Abdulai was the most effective in Olimpi with 21 points and 9 rebounds. Davit Lomidze had 18 points.
