BC Prienai ( lt, Krepšinio klubas Prienai), also known by the sponsor name Labas Gas, is a professional basketball club based in
Prienai
Prienai () is a city in Lithuania situated on the Nemunas River, south of Kaunas. In 2011 the city had 9,867 inhabitants. The name of the city is a derivative from a surname ''Prienas''. Pociūnai Airport is associated with the city.
History
...
,
Lithuania. They play domestically in
Lithuanian Basketball League
Lithuanian may refer to:
* Lithuanians
* Lithuanian language
* The country of Lithuania
* Grand Duchy of Lithuania
* Culture of Lithuania
* Lithuanian cuisine
* Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...
every year. During the 2008–09 season, then called Rūdupis, they became the champion of the
NKL and won the challenge match for a slot in the
LKL. In their debut LKL season Rūdupis took seventh place, while next two seasons brought BC Prienai two bronze LKL medals. BC Prienai played in
EuroCup 2011–12 with moderate success; the team won 3 games out of 6, but nonetheless failed to qualify for the next stage. More recently, the team has become a strong competitor in domestic tournaments, more than once upsetting teams such as
Žalgiris Kaunas and
Lietuvos rytas Vilnius. In December 2017, in a highly publicized move, Vytautas signed American basketball players and brothers
LaMelo
LaMelo LaFrance Ball (born August 22, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Hornets with the third overall pick of the 2020 NBA draft. ...
and
LiAngelo Ball
LiAngelo Robert Ball (born November 24, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Greensboro Swarm of the NBA G League. Ball played for Chino Hills High School in California, where he won a state championship and achieved nati ...
.
History
1994–2010: Early years
The club was founded in 1994 as KK Prienų Taupomasis Bankas playing in the
LKAL
LKAL - Lietuvos Krepšinio A Lyga (English: Lithuanian Basketball A League), was the second Lithuanian basketball league until it ceased to exist in the spring of 2005.
The new created league named ''NKL'', Nacionalinė Krepšinio Lyga (Natio ...
and were one of the top teams. They joined the
NKL ever since its foundation in 2005. During this time period in the NKL, the team would change names as it seemed every season, Prienai had their ups and downs, such as going from third seed in their group to not making the playoffs next season, but the major victories were yet to come.
During 2008–09 season, then called Rūdupis, the club, for the first time in the club history, became
NKL champions downing Meresta Pakruojis in Game 7 of the finals. Because of that, BC Rūdupis got their slot in the
Lithuanian Basketball League
Lithuanian may refer to:
* Lithuanians
* Lithuanian language
* The country of Lithuania
* Grand Duchy of Lithuania
* Culture of Lithuania
* Lithuanian cuisine
* Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...
.
The 2009–10 season was Rūdupis' debut in the
LKL. The club took seventh place that season as they lost first round of
LKL playoffs
The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eit ...
to Lithuanian powerhouse
Žalgiris Kaunas.
2010–2014: Turning heads
During the 2010–11 season, BC Rūdupis won the
LKF Cup
The LKF Cup was an annual national domestic cup competition for Lithuanian professional basketball teams. It was organised by the Lithuanian Basketball Federation (Lietuvos Krepšinio Federacija - LKF). The competition's full name was Lietuvos Kre ...
Bronze medals and was only one step away from gold or silver medals as they lost a thriller against the legendary Žalgiris Kaunas 73–75, but the surprises from BC Rūdupis in the 2010–11 season were not finished yet, as BC Rūdupis defeated
Lithuanian Basketball League
Lithuanian may refer to:
* Lithuanians
* Lithuanian language
* The country of Lithuania
* Grand Duchy of Lithuania
* Culture of Lithuania
* Lithuanian cuisine
* Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...
champions Lietuvos rytas Vilnius with result 96–82, during a
LKL match at their home arena on 29 March 2011. On 15 April 2011, BC Rūdupis signed a contract with
Rolandas Alijevas
Rolandas Alijevas (born 20 January 1985) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player of Azeri descent.
Pro career
On 15 April 2011, Alijevas signed a contract with BC Prienai, until the end of the season.
On 28 June 2011, he signed with BC ...
until the end of the season. In the
LKL semi finals
SEMI is an industry association comprising companies involved in the electronics design and manufacturing supply chain. They provide equipment, materials and services for the manufacture of semiconductors, photovoltaic panels, LED and flat pan ...
Rūdupis was not able to eliminate Lithuanian basketball powerhouse Lietuvos rytas Vilnius as they lost both matches (first match: 75–88, second match: 69–96). Rūdupis then played against Juventus in the
LKL Bronze final, they won the first game at Prienai with a result of 79–65, then won the second game, this time on the road in
Utena
Utena () is a city in north-east Lithuania. It is the administrative center of Utena district and Utena County. Utena is one of the oldest settlements of Lithuania. The name of the city is most probably derived from a hydronym. The name of the s ...
with a result 98–73. The third game took place in Prienai where Rūdupis won a thriller 84–83, thus winning the series 3–0 and becoming
Lithuanian Basketball League
Lithuanian may refer to:
* Lithuanians
* Lithuanian language
* The country of Lithuania
* Grand Duchy of Lithuania
* Culture of Lithuania
* Lithuanian cuisine
* Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...
bronze medalists for the first time in the club's history.
![Mindaugas Lukauskis by Augustas Didzgalvis](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Mindaugas_Lukauskis_by_Augustas_Didzgalvis.jpg)
In 2011–12 season, the team played in the EuroCup competition, finishing 3rd in the group, though failing to qualify to the playoffs. They repeated as bronze medal winners, this time defeating
Šiauliai
Šiauliai (; bat-smg, Šiaulē; german: Schaulen, ) is the fourth largest city in Lithuania, with a population of 107,086. From 1994 to 2010 it was the capital of Šiauliai County.
Names
Šiauliai is referred to by various names in different la ...
3–1.
The 2012–13 season was moderately successful for BC Prienai. The team played in the EuroCup, but again did not move past the group stage. The team also reached the BBL finals, and won the LKF Cup against
Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys. Despite home court advantage, Prienai lost to
Neptūnas Klaipėda in the bronze medal series.
In the 2013–14 season, Lithuanian businessman
Antanas Guoga
Antanas Guoga (born 17 December 1973), more commonly known as Tony G, is a Lithuanian- Australian businessman, poker player, politician and philanthropist. In November 2020, Antanas was elected to the 2020–2024 legislative period of the Sei ...
sponsored the newly renamed BC TonyBet, the team once again won the LKF Cup when they pulled off a double upset, defeating Lietuvos rytas Vilnius in the finals after upsetting Žalgiris Kaunas in the semifinal. Prienai finished second in the LKL regular season, which even included a blowout win against Žalgiris Kaunas 101–83 at home. BC TonyBet made it to the semifinals for the fourth consecutive year, this time with a chance to qualify to the LKL finals for the first time ever, but lost the series 0–2 to Neptūnas Klaipėda. In the bronze medal series, the team lost to Lietuvos rytas. Apart from the disappointing finish, it was one of the most successful seasons in club history.
2014–present: Setbacks & a new direction
The 2014–15 season was more of a write-off, as it started a rebuilding phase for the team. The team, having lost their main sponsor, longtime coach and much of the previous season's roster, played poorly. The team barely avoided relegation in the LKL, with a 23-game losing streak plummeting the team to the bottom of the standings. The team played better in the BBL, reaching the playoffs. Because of poor play, the team failed to qualify for the LKF Cup, losing it to Žalgiris Kaunas after their successful previous two seasons.
![Vytautas Sulskis by Augustas Didzgalvis](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Vytautas_Sulskis_by_Augustas_Didzgalvis.jpg)
In the 2015 off-season, BC Prienai announced a sponsorship deal with Birštonas mineral water company, will be changing their name to BC Birštono Vytautas for sponsorship reasons. Having proper sponsorship, the club hopes to return to their competitive ways in the upcoming season. It was later corrected that the name will be BC Vytautas and that the club is going to be shared with the neighboring city of
Birštonas
Birštonas () is a balneological resort and a spa town in Lithuania situated south of Kaunas on the right bank of the Nemunas River. Birštonas received its city rights 1529, and was appointed a city in 1966. The city is the administrative c ...
, which hopefully would also expand the fanbase. Furthermore, on 29 July 2015, the club was invited to join the
2015–16 FIBA Europe Cup
The 2015–16 FIBA Europe Cup was the inaugural season of the newly formed basketball competition organised by FIBA. The season started on 21 October 2015 and ended on 1 May 2016.
The competition replaced the EuroChallenge and had the aim to take ...
tournament, which is the alternative version of the 2nd tier European tournament
EuroCup, organized by
FIBA
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its nam ...
. Although, just before the drawing ceremony, it was announced that 56 teams will participate instead of 64 and Vytautas is not one of these 56. In this off-season BC Vytautas brought back former players
Povilas Butkevičius
Povilas Butkevičius (born 26 September 1987) is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player.
Professional career
From 2004-2005, till 2011-2012, he was part of Lithuanian powerhouse Žalgiris Kaunas.
On 17 August 2010 he was loaned to ...
,
Vaidas Čepukaitis and
Laimonas Kisielius, also resigning Prienai natives
Domantas Šeškus,
Paulius Ivanauskas and bringing in major reinforcement with
Šarūnas Vasiliauskas,
Vilmantas Dilys,
Vytautas Šulskis
Vytautas Šulskis (born August 8, 1988) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player.
High school
Born in Vilnius, Šulskis attended The Rock of Gainesville High School in Gainesville, Florida, where he played soccer and basketball. During his ...
,
Gytis Sirutavičius
Gytis Sirutavičius (born 12 January 1983) is a Lithuanian professional basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary obj ...
. On 16 September 2015, Prienai announced their new logo and color change to blue and white as part of the sponsorship deal, though blue has been a traditional sports team color in the Prienai–Birštonas area.
On 30 December 2015, Prienai native
Edvinas Šeškus
Edvinas Šeškus (born 10 March 1995) is a Lithuanian basketball player for CBet Jonava of the Lithuanian Basketball League. He mainly plays the shooting guard position.
He is 196 cm (6' 5") tall and weighs 100 kg (220 lbs).
C ...
was cleared to play for Vytautas, joining his father the head coach and his older brother Domantas. Because of injuries ruining the rotation, on 26 February 2016, Vytautas signed
Tauras Jogėla
Tauras Jogėla (born 2 May 1993) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Soproni KC
Soproni Kosárlabda Club, commonly known as Soproni KC or Sopron, is a professional basketball team based in Sopron, Hungary. The team competes in the ...
. In the BBL playoffs, they lost to
Nevėžis Kėdainiai in an upset. Vytautas finished the LKL regular season with a 19–17 record, but lost 2–3 in the quarterfinals to
Juventus Utena.
Before the 2016–17 season, the team signed longtime Lithuanian national team player
Tomas Delininkaitis
Tomas Delininkaitis (born June 11, 1982) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player. He was a member of the Lithuanian national basketball team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship . He is 1.90 m (6 ft 2 in) and weighs 82 kg.
Profe ...
. In addition to the LKL, the team also played in the
FIBA Europe Cup
The FIBA Europe Cup (FEC) is an annual professional club basketball competition organised by FIBA for eligible European clubs. It is FIBA's European-wide second level. Clubs mainly qualify for the competition based on their performance in natio ...
. They easily finished 1st in the regular season group, defeating
Mureș and
TLÜ/Kalev Tallinn. In the second round, the team finished second, losing only to
Telekom Baskets Bonn
Telekom Baskets Bonn, also known as Baskets Bonn, is a German professional basketball club that is based in Bonn, Germany. The club plays in the Basketball Bundesliga, which is German basketball league system, the highest level pro basketball le ...
. The loss at home, however, cost the team a place in the playoffs. BC Vytautas then entered the BBL playoffs, as one of the potential favorites to win. They easily defeated
Pärnu
Pärnu () is the fourth largest city in Estonia. Situated in southwest Estonia, Pärnu is located south of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and west of Estonia's second largest city, Tartu. The city sits off the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet ...
in the first round, before defeating Latvian champions
Valmiera
Valmiera (; german: link=no, Wolmar; pl, Wolmar see other names) is the largest city of the historical Vidzeme region, Latvia, with a total area of . As of 2002, Valmiera had a population of 27,323, and in 2020 – 24 879. It is a state cit ...
in the quarterfinals and Estonian champions
Kalev/Cramo Tallinn in the semifinals. In the finals, Vytautas faced LKL rival Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys. After losing the first game at home 85–88, they won the away game 89–74, winning the series 174–162 on aggregate, and winning their first BBL championship. Injuries started hurting the team, and in the quarterfinals Vytautas lost the series 0–3 to
Lietkabelis Panevėžys.
The Ball brothers (2018)
Vytautas started the 2017–18 season poorly by failing to qualify for the
2017–18 Basketball Champions League
The 2017–18 Basketball Champions League was the second season of the Basketball Champions League (BCL), a European-wide professional basketball competition for clubs, that was launched by FIBA. The competition began on 19 September 2017, with th ...
season. The team was also performing poorly in the
national competition by achieving only 4 victories out of 13 games in the
2017–18 LKL season. Consequently, the interest of fans to the team was rapidly decreasing every day. However, on 11 December 2017, with the help of 21 year old Communications Manager Erikas Kirvelaitis, the team signed
LiAngelo and
LaMelo Ball
LaMelo LaFrance Ball (born August 22, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Hornets with the third overall pick of the 2020 NBA draft. ...
, the younger brothers of then
Los Angeles Laker
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...
player
Lonzo Ball
Lonzo Anderson Ball (born October 27, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A point guard, he played college basketball for one season with the UCLA Bruins, earn ...
, both of whom reportedly agreed to join the team in the beginning of January 2018. Team managers described it as instant success.
In early January 2018, Vytautas pulled out of the Baltic Basketball League season, instead hosting the newly formed
Big Baller Brand Challenge Games
Big Baller Brand Challenge Games were a series of friendly basketball games between Vytautas Prienai–Birštonas of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) and five teams in the LKL, National Basketball League (NKL), and Regional Basketball ...
to give the Ball brothers more playing time against weaker teams, most of which played in lower leagues.
On 23 January 2018, the team announced that the
Big Baller Brand
Big Baller Brand (BBB) is an American company that designs, manufactures, and sells clothing and shoes. Launched in 2016 by Alan Foster and LaVar Ball, it has most notably produced signature shoes for the Ball brothers—basketball players Lon ...
was an official sponsor until the end of the season.
The news would be announced with the company helping pay off the team's debts they accrued previously, which amounted to 100,000 Euros. On the same day, the team temporarily appointed
LaVar Ball
LaVar Christopher Ball (born October 23, 1967) is an American businessman. He is the co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of the sports apparel company Big Baller Brand and founder of the now defunct Junior Basketball Association (JBA ...
, owner of the brand and the famous father of the Ball brothers, as assistant coach for a match-up with
Dzūkija Alytus in the Big Baller Brand Challenge Games.
On January 28, for the team's concluding exhibition game against
Jonava
Jonava ( ; pl, Janów; german: Janau) is the ninth largest city in Lithuania with a population of .
It is located in Kaunas County in central Lithuania, north east of Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. It is served by Kaunas Interna ...
, Ball was named head coach. Vytautas won all five games. By the end of February, Vytautas announced that it would play in another exhibition event sponsored by Ball's company, known the
Big Baller Brand International Tournament
The Big Baller Brand International Tournament was a round-robin basketball tournament hosted by Vytautas Prienai–Birštonas of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) that featured three teams from different European countries. It began on Fe ...
, a
round-robin competition featuring three European teams outside of Lithuania.
In those games,
LaVar Ball
LaVar Christopher Ball (born October 23, 1967) is an American businessman. He is the co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of the sports apparel company Big Baller Brand and founder of the now defunct Junior Basketball Association (JBA ...
would be the team's head coach there instead. This time, Vytautas lost all three games. Vytautas would also play exhibition games against the youth squad for the Chinese
Guangdong Southern Tigers
Guangdong Hongyuan Southern Tigers () or Guangdong Southern Tigers, also known as Guangdong Dongguan Bank () for sponsorship reasons, are a Chinese professional basketball team owned by the Guangdong Winnerway (Hongyuan) Group. The team is one o ...
in Lithuania and the British
London Lions in England on March 27 and April 2 respectively. Vytautas won both games, defeating the Tigers 157–113 with LiAngelo scoring 72 points, and defeated the Lions 127–110, with the Ball brothers scoring a combined 83 points. After some drastic changes made, mainly with LaMelo being sidelined near the end of the regular season and leader
Tomas Dimša
Tomas Dimša (born 2 January 1994) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Žalgiris Kaunas of the LKL and the EuroLeague. He mostly plays at the shooting guard position.
Professional career
Before starting his professional career, ...
leaving the team, Vytautas would go on a three-game winning streak, thus helping them hopefully avoid relegation this season. However, after a 25 April loss to
Šiauliai
Šiauliai (; bat-smg, Šiaulē; german: Schaulen, ) is the fourth largest city in Lithuania, with a population of 107,086. From 1994 to 2010 it was the capital of Šiauliai County.
Names
Šiauliai is referred to by various names in different la ...
where neither of the Ball brothers played that day, their father LaVar announced that he would pull the two players from the team on 29 April and have them return to the United States, with the plan on helping LiAngelo try and acquire a spot in the
2018 NBA draft. Before leaving, LaVar praised the fans and the team, but criticized coach Šeškus.
A 66–77 loss to
Neptūnas Klaipėda at home ended almost all hope of reaching the ninth place and avoiding potential relegation, and a 73–79 loss to rival
Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys meant that Vytautas would finish in the last place. Before the last game of the season the team released
Kervin Bristol,
Rashaun Broadus
Rashaun Eneal Broadus (born August 5, 1984) is an American-born naturalized Albanian former professional basketball player. Born in Seattle, Washington, he attended Mililani High School in Mililani, Hawaii. A tall point guard, Broadus then compe ...
and one of the team's leaders
Denys Lukashov
Denys Lukashov (born 30 April 1989) is a Ukrainian basketball player for Prometey of the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League. He is a member of the Ukrainian national team, where he participated at the EuroBasket 2015.
Honours Club
;Budivelnyk ...
. In the last game of the season, Vytautas suffered one of the most embarrassing losses in club history, to the reigning champions
Žalgiris Kaunas, losing the game in Kaunas 52–109. On 13 June, the LKL announced that Vytautas would most likely not play in the league in the 2018–19 season due to relegation. However, on 17 July, the league announced that Vytautas would participate in the new season after
Vytis Šakiai from the
NKL did not meet the promotional requirements. A press statement from the team in August 2018 revealed that during their time with the club, the Ball family "started destroying the club" through means like not paying the prize money for the Big Baller Brand's tournament winners, withdrawing financial support, and taking back shooting machines that were presented to the team as gifts. However, despite no longer having Vytautas as a sponsor for the team, they look to survive by finding players with great discipline and personalities and giving priority to those professionals.
SkyCop (2018–2019)
In August, the team changed their name to BC SkyCop after their new sponsor, flight compensation group SkyCop. No player remained from the previous season, with coach Šeškus building a new team for the upcoming season. The team signed away three of
BC Lietkabelis players, the
Lavrinovič twins, former members of the
Lithuanian national basketball team
The Lithuania men's national basketball team ( lt, Lietuvos nacionalinė vyrų krepšinio rinktinė) represents Lithuania in international basketball competitions. They are controlled by the Lithuanian Basketball Federation, the governing body ...
and leaders of Lietkabelis, and
Gintaras Leonavičius
Gintaras Leonavičius (born October 29, 1983) is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player, playing as a shooting guard. Born in Panevėžys
Panevėžys (; Latin: ''Panevezen''; pl, Poniewież; yi, פּאָנעװעזש, ''Ponevezh' ...
. Former member of SkyCop, longtime BC Rytas player
Mindaugas Lukauskis signed in August, and signed solid power forward, Mike Bruesewitz, the leader of Latvian champions
BK Ventspils. The team also signed small forward Austin Arians and Maverick Morgan, who had solid seasons in Ukraine and Poland. Davis Lejasmeiers and the returning
Ovidijus Varanauskas were signed at the point guard position. The team also brought back Arnas Labuckas. Just before the season started, SkyCop signed former longtime BC Rytas player and 2-time Euroleague champion
Martynas Gecevičius
Martynas "Marty" Gecevičius (born May 16, 1988) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Juventus Utena of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL). Standing at , he primarily plays at the shooting guard position.
Professional career
G ...
to a contract. In the first game of the season in the LKL, SkyCop faced
BC Lietkabelis, one of the top teams, and won in dominating fashion 93–78. However, by the end of November, the team struggled in the LKL with a 4–8 record, and fighting for a place in the playoffs, leading to Arians, Morgan, Lejasmiers and
Tyrone Nash
Tyrone Sidney Nash (born September 24, 1988) is an American professional basketball player who last played for Rasta Vechta of the German ProA. He played college basketball for the University of Notre Dame before playing professionally in Germany, ...
being released from the team. While the additions of the returning
Žygimantas Janavičius
Žygimantas Janavičius (born February 20, 1989) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Neptūnas Klaipėda of the Lithuanian Basketball League. Standing at tall and weighing , he plays as a point guard.
Career
Janavičius made hi ...
and newcomer
Anthony Lee Jr. helped the team, more departures followed - team leader Bruesewitz left the team in January, followed by Varanauskas. By the middle of January, SkyCop was tied for 6th place in the LKL standings, with a 7–11 record. Former
BC Nevėžis leader
Malcolm Grant
Sir Malcolm John Grant, , (born 29 November 1947) is a barrister, academic lawyer, and former law professor. Born and educated in New Zealand, he was the ninth President and Provost of University College London – the head as well as principa ...
was signed at the end of January, while Lee Jr. was released during February. SkyCop rebounded around April, scoring wins and securing a place in the playoffs, and on April 30, SkyCop scored their biggest win by defeating
BC Žalgiris
Basketball Club Žalgiris ( lt, Krepšinio klubas Žalgiris) is a professional basketball team that is based in Kaunas, Lithuania, and competes domestically in the Lietuvos krepšinio lyga (LKL, Lithuanian Basketball League). Founded in 1944, i ...
81:76 at home. SkyCop finished the regular season with a 13–23 record, but in 7th place. SkyCop faced Neptūnas - after getting blown away 78:102 in the first game, SkyCop rebounded with a surprising 94:85 win at home. In the decisive match, SkyCop fought hard, before falling 71:77 in Klaipėda, losing the series 1:2 and ending the season.
In the new format of the
King Mindaugas Cup
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
, SkyCop faced in the first round NKL team
BC Vytis
BC Vytis is a professional team based in Šakiai, Lithuania that currently plays in National Basketball League. In 2015, the club fans selected new club name and logo.
Club achievements
* 2013–14 season: NKL Round of 16
* 2014–15 season: ...
– the team that was supposed to take their place in the LKL. SkyCop eliminated Vytis on aggregate, 169:133, with two straight wins (78:54 away and 91:79 at home). In the second round, SkyCop faced
BC Dzūkija – losing the first game at home, 83:84, SkyCop was down for much of the first half in the return game in Alytus – before a very strong second half led to a 79:68 win and a win on aggregate, 162:152. In the quarterfinals, now joined by Janavičius, SkyCop faced one of the heavy favorites,
BC Neptūnas. SkyCop scored a tie 85:85 in the first game at home, and led for most of the returning game in Klaipėda, before a solid fourth quarter by Neptūnas led to an 89:80 victory, eliminating SkyCop by aggregate, 174:165.
CBet (2019–2021)
After losing to
BC Neptūnas in May, coach Šeškus announced that he would not return as coach for the 2019–2020 season. Only Mindaugas Lukauskis, Ernestas Mankauskas and assistant coach Marius Leonavičius remained on the team from the previous season.
Mantas Šernius
Mantas Šernius (born June 29, 1983) is currently basketball assistant coach of Prometey of the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League and EuroCup. Šernius is also the Head coach of the Lithuania women's national basketball team
The Lithuani ...
was named the new head coach of the team.
Arnas Velička
Arnas Velička (born 10 December 1999) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Niners Chemnitz of the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL).
Professional career
In 2015, after solid performance in FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship he signed w ...
was loaned by
BC Žalgiris
Basketball Club Žalgiris ( lt, Krepšinio klubas Žalgiris) is a professional basketball team that is based in Kaunas, Lithuania, and competes domestically in the Lietuvos krepšinio lyga (LKL, Lithuanian Basketball League). Founded in 1944, i ...
to get more playing time. Former players
Gediminas Maceina,
Vaidas Čepukaitis and
Regimantas Miniotas
Regimantas Miniotas (born 14 March 1996) is a Lithuanian basketball player for BC Wolves of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL).
Professional career
Miniotas started his professional career when he signed with BC Žalgiris-2 in 2014, after p ...
returned to the team. CBet also signed
Martynas Varnas,
Lukas Uleckas and
Karolis Guščikas.
Skylar Spencer and
Devon van Oostrum
Devon van Oostrum (born 24 January 1993) is a British-Dutch professional basketball player who last played for the London Lions of the British Basketball League (BBL). He has represented the Great Britain men's national basketball team.
Profe ...
were briefly signed, and
Tom Digbeu
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name)
Characters
* Tom Anderson, a character in ''List of Beavis and Butt-Head characters#Local r ...
was also loaned by Žalgiris, but both left, with Digbeu not playing a single game for CBet.
Kerr Kriisa was also briefly loaned by Žalgiris. CBet played in the
King Mindaugas Cup
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
, eliminating
National Basketball League side
BC Šilutė
BC Šilutė is a professional Šilutė, Lithuania basketball club, currently playing in National Basketball League. BC Šilutė was founded in 1990 and currently is the oldest participant in NKL. From 1993 to 1999 seasons, BC Šilutė played in ...
, but were eliminated by
BC Šiauliai
BC Šiauliai ( lt, Krepšinio klubas Šiauliai) is the professional basketball club of Šiauliai, Lithuania. The club competes in the Lithuanian Basketball League. It has won the 3rd place award (behind Lithuanian basketball giants Lietuvos Rytas ...
in the second round. For much of the season, the young CBet was successfully fighting for the 5-6th places in the LKL. In December, CBet signed
Donatas Sabeckis and were loaned
Laurynas Birutis
Laurynas Birutis (born 27 August 1997) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Žalgiris Kaunas of Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) and the EuroLeague.
Professional career
BC Zalgiris junior team and debut in LKL
Birutis start ...
by Žalgiris, a former duo who had much success in BC Šiauliai and briefly played together in Žalgiris. Birutis won the MVP in the LKL in the month of February, and also earned an invite for the
Lithuanian national basketball team
The Lithuania men's national basketball team ( lt, Lietuvos nacionalinė vyrų krepšinio rinktinė) represents Lithuania in international basketball competitions. They are controlled by the Lithuanian Basketball Federation, the governing body ...
. After the season was ended early due to the coronavirus outbreak and subsequent pandemic, CBet finished the LKL season in 6th place - improvement over the previous season.
The 2020–2021 season was even better for CBet. CBet lost much of their previous season roster, and many of the best players left CBet during the season, like team leader Miniotas, who lead the team in much statistical categories and even was called up to the
Lithuanian national basketball team
The Lithuania men's national basketball team ( lt, Lietuvos nacionalinė vyrų krepšinio rinktinė) represents Lithuania in international basketball competitions. They are controlled by the Lithuanian Basketball Federation, the governing body ...
, due to better contract offers or financial difficulties, under coach Šernius, CBet finished the season in 5th place, a surprise to many. Coach Šernius was named the LKL Coach of the Year. Many of the best players for CBet, like
Mindaugas Sušinskas,
Einaras Tubutis
Einaras Tubutis (born 4 November 1998) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Élan Chalon of the LNB Pro A. Standing 2.07 m (6 ft 9 in), he plays the power forward position. Tubutis has competed with the Lithuanian junior national t ...
or the returning Tom Digbeu, also late season signings like
Ignas Sargiūnas
Ignas is a Lithuanian masculine given name. It may refer to:
* Ignas Barkauskas (born 1988), Lithuanian diver
*Ignas Brazdeikis (born 1999), Lithuanian basketball player
*Ignas Budrys (1933–1999), Lithuanian painter
* Ignas Darkintis (born 19 ...
, returning from the NCAA, played the best seasons of their careers. CBet, even with all their problems, still gave the best fight they could give against a much stronger
BC Juventus
BC Juventus ( lt, Krepšinio klubas Juventus), also known as Uniclub Casino Juventus for sponsorship reasons, is a Lithuanian professional basketball club based in Utena, Lithuania. Founded in 1999, the club currently plays in the Lithuanian Bas ...
team in the LKL playoffs, losing the series 0–2.
Labas-GAS (2021–present)
During the summer, after losing their CBet sponsorship to
BC Jonava
The BC Jonava, known for sponsorship reasons as the BC CBet ( lt, Jonavos CBet; en, CBet Jonava), are a Lithuanian professional basketball team based in Jonava. The CBet compete in the Lietuvos Krepšinio Lyga (LKL).
The club was officially foun ...
, now coached by long time former coach of Prienai, Virginijus Šeškus, having found a new sponsor, Prienai became known as Labas GAS Prienai. Coach Šernius left during the summer, and much of the previous season's roster left the team as well. Labas GAS decided to focus more on young players. The team re-signed point guard
Ignas Sargiūnas
Ignas is a Lithuanian masculine given name. It may refer to:
* Ignas Barkauskas (born 1988), Lithuanian diver
*Ignas Brazdeikis (born 1999), Lithuanian basketball player
*Ignas Budrys (1933–1999), Lithuanian painter
* Ignas Darkintis (born 19 ...
, who joined the team just last season, and signed talented young players like
Erikas Venskus,
Rapolas Ivanauskas,
Juwan Durham and
Jovan Kljajič, all who quickly became one of the leaders of the team along with Sargiūnas. Labas GAS also signed the talented point guard
Vasilije Pušica
Vasilije "Vasa" Pušica ( sr-cyr, Василије Пушица, born September 12, 1995) is a Serbian professional basketball player for Śląsk Wrocław (basketball), Śląsk Wrocław of the Polish Basketball League, PLK. He played college baske ...
to a deal for the season. He spent most of his time on the injury list, and after a few games, left the team.
Marius Leonavičius, long time assistant in Prienai, became the team's new head coach. However, a disastrous 0–11 start in the LKL, and a poor finish in the
King Mindaugas Cup
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
, resulting in Labas Gas not even qualifying for the playoffs, resulted in assistant
Vidas Ginevičius
Vidas Ginevičius (born May 11, 1978) is a 1.93 m (6'4") in height, 93 kg (205 pound) in weight, Lithuanian professional basketball point guard born in Kaunas, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union, USSR.
Pro career
His career started in 1999, when ...
taking over as interim head coach in December by replacing Leonavičius, before
Tomas Gaidamavičius Tomas may refer to:
People
* Tomás (given name), a Spanish, Portuguese, and Gaelic given name
* Tomas (given name), a Swedish, Dutch, and Lithuanian given name
* Tomáš, a Czech and Slovak given name
* Tomas (surname), a French and Croatian surna ...
, who recently departed from Neptūnas Klaipėda, was signed as the new head coach for the team. The team's fortunes didn't really improve - despite great play from players like Sargiūnas and Ivanauskas, Labas GAS finished the season in last place in the LKL, with a 3-27 record, though winning two memorable games against
BC Juventus
BC Juventus ( lt, Krepšinio klubas Juventus), also known as Uniclub Casino Juventus for sponsorship reasons, is a Lithuanian professional basketball club based in Utena, Lithuania. Founded in 1999, the club currently plays in the Lithuanian Bas ...
during the season, and having many great performances against the leading LKL teams. Despite finishing in last place, Labas GAS remained in the LKL, with LKL choosing not to relegate any team after the season.
Players
Current roster
Depth chart
Squad changes for/during the 2021–22 season
In
* HC - Head coach
Out
* HC - Head coach
Team staff
General Manager - Adomas Kubilius
Team and Communications Manager - Erikas Kirvelaiti
Logos
Rudupis.png, Prienai logo (1994–2015)
BC Vytautas.png, Vytautas sponsorship logo (2015–2018)
Bc_skycop_logo.png, Skycop sponsorship logo (2018–2019)
BC Prienai logo.png, Cbet sponsorship logo (2019–2021)
New BC Prienai logo.png, Labas Gas sponsorship logo (2021–present)
Honours
Domestic competitions
*
LKAL
LKAL - Lietuvos Krepšinio A Lyga (English: Lithuanian Basketball A League), was the second Lithuanian basketball league until it ceased to exist in the spring of 2005.
The new created league named ''NKL'', Nacionalinė Krepšinio Lyga (Natio ...
:3rd place (1): 2003
*
NKL
:Winners (1): 2009
*
Lithuanian Basketball League
Lithuanian may refer to:
* Lithuanians
* Lithuanian language
* The country of Lithuania
* Grand Duchy of Lithuania
* Culture of Lithuania
* Lithuanian cuisine
* Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...
:3rd place (2): 2011, 2012
*
LKF Cup
The LKF Cup was an annual national domestic cup competition for Lithuanian professional basketball teams. It was organised by the Lithuanian Basketball Federation (Lietuvos Krepšinio Federacija - LKF). The competition's full name was Lietuvos Kre ...
:Winners (2): 2013, 2014
:3rd place (1): 2011
Regional competitions
*
BBL Championship
The British Basketball League Championship, often shortened to the BBL Championship, is the top-level men's professional basketball league in the United Kingdom. Established in 1987, the competition is administered by the British Basketball Leagu ...
:Winners (1): 2017
:Runners-up (2): 2013, 2014
*
BBL Challenge Cup
:Runners-up (1): 2010
Season-by-season
::
Detailed information of former rosters and results.
Notable players
*
Valdas Dabkus
Valdas Dabkus (born March 26, 1984) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player. Dabkus plays at the small forward and power forward positions.
National team career
Dabkus previously represented the Lithuanian youth squads, and won a silver ...
(
2010; 2012)
*
Povilas Butkevičius
Povilas Butkevičius (born 26 September 1987) is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player.
Professional career
From 2004-2005, till 2011-2012, he was part of Lithuanian powerhouse Žalgiris Kaunas.
On 17 August 2010 he was loaned to ...
(
2010–2012, 2015–2016)
*
Gediminas Orelik
Gediminas Orelik ( lt, Gediminas Orelikas) (born 14 May 1990) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Lietkabelis Panevėžys of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL). He primarily plays at power forward position.
Professional caree ...
(
2010–2013)
*
Dainius Šalenga
Dainius Šalenga (born 15 April 1977) is a Lithuanian retired professional basketball player. He is a small forward that is mainly known for his three–point shooting abilities. Šalenga represented the senior Lithuanian national basketball ...
(
2011–2012, 2013, 2015–2016)
*
Rolandas Alijevas
Rolandas Alijevas (born 20 January 1985) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player of Azeri descent.
Pro career
On 15 April 2011, Alijevas signed a contract with BC Prienai, until the end of the season.
On 28 June 2011, he signed with BC ...
(
2011–2012)
*
Saulius Kuzminskas
Saulius Kuzminskas (born May 30, 1982) is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player. His younger brother Mindaugas is also a basketball player for the Olimpia Milano.
Professional career
Kuzminskas debuted in 1999 with Sakalai. He brie ...
(
2011–2012)
*
Gintaras Kadžiulis
Gintaras Kadžiulis (born 29 March 1980) is a Lithuanian professional basketball coach and former player. His playing position was combo guard.
Professional career
Born in Panevėžys, Kadžiulis started his professional basketball career at th ...
(
2011–2014)
*
Artūras Valeika
Artūras Valeika (born 11 August 1985) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for CBet Jonava of the Lithuanian Basketball League. He is 2 times champion in Romania with CSM Oradea, and one time SuperCup winner with the ”Red Lions”.
...
(
2012–2014)
*
Siim-Sander Vene
Siim-Sander Vene (born 12 November 1990) is an Estonian professional basketball player for Hapoel Jerusalem of the Israeli Basketball Premier League and the Basketball Champions League. Standing at 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in), he plays both the small ...
(
2012–2013)
*
Mindaugas Lukauskis (
2013–2014)
*
Artūras Milaknis
Artūras Milaknis (born 16 June 1986) is a Lithuanian professional basketball for Tofaş of Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL). Standing at , he primarily plays as a shooting guard position.
Early career
A native of Kaunas, Milaknis began his career in ...
(
2012–2013)
*
Gediminas Maceina (
2017–2020)
*
LaMelo Ball
LaMelo LaFrance Ball (born August 22, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Hornets with the third overall pick of the 2020 NBA draft. ...
(
2018)
*
LiAngelo Ball
LiAngelo Robert Ball (born November 24, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Greensboro Swarm of the NBA G League. Ball played for Chino Hills High School in California, where he won a state championship and achieved nati ...
(
2018)
Head coaches
*
Virginijus Šeškus
Virginijus Šeškus (born February 8, 1967) is a Lithuanian basketball coach. He is currently head coach of CBet Jonava of the LKL.
Career
Virginijus Šeškus was born in Prienai, Lithuania. He trained children in Prienai sports school. La ...
:
2008–2014, 2015–2019
*
Tadas Stankevičius:
2014–2015
*
Mantas Šernius
Mantas Šernius (born June 29, 1983) is currently basketball assistant coach of Prometey of the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League and EuroCup. Šernius is also the Head coach of the Lithuania women's national basketball team
The Lithuani ...
:
2019–2021
*
Marius Leonavičius:
2021–present
Sponsors
The club is very closely related with the Royal Spa Residence in
Birštonas
Birštonas () is a balneological resort and a spa town in Lithuania situated south of Kaunas on the right bank of the Nemunas River. Birštonas received its city rights 1529, and was appointed a city in 1966. The city is the administrative c ...
. All of the team members are living there and the season closing events are also taking place there.
In January 2018, weeks after Vytautas signed American brothers
LaMelo
LaMelo LaFrance Ball (born August 22, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Hornets with the third overall pick of the 2020 NBA draft. ...
and
LiAngelo Ball
LiAngelo Robert Ball (born November 24, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Greensboro Swarm of the NBA G League. Ball played for Chino Hills High School in California, where he won a state championship and achieved nati ...
, their father's sports apparel company
Big Baller Brand
Big Baller Brand (BBB) is an American company that designs, manufactures, and sells clothing and shoes. Launched in 2016 by Alan Foster and LaVar Ball, it has most notably produced signature shoes for the Ball brothers—basketball players Lon ...
was named an official team sponsor.
[ The brand was also the sponsor of two exhibition competitions Vytautas took part in early 2018: the ]Big Baller Brand Challenge Games
Big Baller Brand Challenge Games were a series of friendly basketball games between Vytautas Prienai–Birštonas of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) and five teams in the LKL, National Basketball League (NKL), and Regional Basketball ...
in January and the Big Baller Brand International Tournament
The Big Baller Brand International Tournament was a round-robin basketball tournament hosted by Vytautas Prienai–Birštonas of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) that featured three teams from different European countries. It began on Fe ...
in February.[
]
References
External links
*
{{LKL
Sport in Prienai
Basketball teams established in 1994
1994 establishments in Lithuania