1 Liiga Round 9 (Regular Season): Rapla edge Rae Koss by two points

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

This derby game ended with only two-point home defeat of 7th ranked Rae Koss (4-5) to first ranked Rapla (8-1) 91-89 on Friday evening. Guest team only slightly avoided a big embarassment. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Rae Koss. Rapla made 23-of-26 free shots (88.5 percent) during the game. 26 personal fouls committed by Rae Koss helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. The best player for the winners was Sven Kaldre (197-1991) who scored 20 points and 8 rebounds. chipped in 21 points and 5 rebounds. At the other side the best for losing team was who recorded 21 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Rapla maintains first place with 8-1 record. Rae Koss at the other side keep the seventh position with five games lost. They share it with Tamsalu and Reinar Halliku. Rapla are looking forward to face Audentese (#11) in Tallinn in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Rae Koss will play on the road against Tamsalu (#7) in Tartu and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Another exciting game was a derby match between two teams from Tartu: Ulikool/Estiko (#4) and Tamsalu (#8). Ulikool/Estiko (6-3) won against visiting Tamsalu (4-5) 84-73. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Tamsalu. It was a good game for who led his team to a victory with 24 points and 4 assists. Vladyslav Sinnik contributed with 13 points and 11 rebounds for the winners. Sven Kaldre (197-1991) answered with 22 points for Tamsalu. Tamsalu's coach Rauno Pehka rotated eleven players in this game, but that didn't help. Ulikool/Estiko moved-up to third place, which they share with Kadrina. Tamsalu at the other side dropped to the seventh position with five games lost. They share it with Rae Koss and Reinar Halliku. Ulikool/Estiko will play against Kadrina (#3) at home in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Tamsalu will play against Rae Koss (#9) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
The game in supposed to be also quite interesting. Third ranked Paide VW (6-2) played at the court of 5th ranked Eesti M. (5-4). Paide VW smashed Eesti M. 98-74 on Friday. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Eesti M.. Georg Allemann stepped up and scored 22 points and 7 rebounds for the winners. Paide VW's coach Mart Rohlin felt very confident that he used entire bench which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The best for the losing side was Lauri Mets with a double-double by scoring 12 points and 11 rebounds. Paide VW moved-up to second place. Loser Eesti M. keeps the fifth position with four games lost. They share it with Haljala. Paide VW will meet at home Rock Tartu (#10) in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Eesti M. will play against Reinar Halliku (#8) and hope to secure a win.

Other games of round 9 were quite predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
bottom-ranked Haapsalu was crushed by Kadrina in a road game 105-86. Reinar Halliku smashed Haljala at home 87-66. Audentese lost to Rock Tartu on the opponent's court 79-92.
The best stats of 9th round was 10 points, 8 rebounds and 11 assists by Kiur-Thomas Vehmanen of Paide VW.



Kadrina - Haapsalu 105-86

There was no surprise when 12th ranked Haapsalu (1-8) was crushed on the road by fourth ranked Kadrina (6-3) 105-86 on Friday. Kadrina shot the lights out from three sinking 20 long-distance shots on high 55.6 percentage. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 29 assists. Joonas Jarvelainen stepped up and scored 29 points and 9 rebounds for the winners and Gaspar Bibikov chipped in 14 points, 8 assists and 4 steals. Kadrina's coach Allan Ehte used an eleven-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The best for the losing side was Mattias Rausberg with 22 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists and Rogem Ollino scored 16 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. Four Kadrina and five Haapsalu players scored in double figures. Kadrina moved-up to third place, which they share with Ulikool/Estiko. Haapsalu lost seventh consecutive game. They stay at the bottom position with eight games lost. Kadrina will meet Ulikool/Estiko (#4) in the next round. Haapsalu will play against Haljala (#6) and hope to win that game.
Top scorers:
Haapsalu: R.Mattias 22+8reb+4ast, V.Kent-Kaarel 18+6reb+3ast, O.Rogem 16+5reb+6ast, A.Andres 13+5reb, L.Sten-Egert 11+4reb+3ast, A.Nikita 4+6reb
Kadrina: J.Jarvelainen 29+9reb+1ast, S.Saaremael 17+2reb+7ast, G.Bibikov 14+4reb+8ast, G.Kaldmae 11+3reb+5ast, M.Uukivi 10+2reb, H.Keskulla 9+2reb

Rae Koss - Rapla 89-91

This derby game ended with only two-point home defeat of 7th ranked Rae Koss (4-5) to first ranked Rapla (8-1) 91-89 on Friday evening. Guest team only slightly avoided a big embarassment. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Rae Koss. Rapla made 23-of-26 free shots (88.5 percent) during the game. 26 personal fouls committed by Rae Koss helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. The best player for the winners was Sven Kaldre (197-1991) who scored 20 points and 8 rebounds. Tom Kaldre chipped in 21 points and 5 rebounds. Four Rapla players scored in double figures. At the other side the best for losing team was who recorded 21 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists and Jalmar-Joosep Saar added 12 points respectively. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Rapla maintains first place with 8-1 record. Rae Koss at the other side keep the seventh position with five games lost. They share it with Tamsalu and Reinar Halliku. Rapla are looking forward to face Audentese (#11) in Tallinn in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Rae Koss will play on the road against Tamsalu (#7) in Tartu and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Rae Koss: V.Kaspar 21+8reb+4ast, L.Siim 12+1reb, S.Jalmar-Joosep 12+4reb+1ast, V.Rasmus 10+1reb, K.Ken 9+3reb+4ast, A.Mihkel 9+7reb
Rapla: J.Ratas 21+3reb+3ast, T.Kaldre 21+5reb+2ast, K.Sven 20+8reb+1ast, M.Heinakroon 13+3reb+3ast, T.Laurimaa 6+2reb, K.Poldoja 4+3reb+5ast

Reinar Halliku - Haljala 87-66

There was a surprise result in Tartu where ninth ranked Reinar Halliku (4-5) smashed higher ranked Haljala (5-4) 87-66 on Friday. Reinar Halliku dominated down low during the game scoring 44 of its points in the paint compared to Haljala's 24 and made 16-of-18 free shots (88.9 percent) during the game. They outrebounded Haljala 41-21 including a 32-16 advantage in defensive rebounds. Toomas Raadik stepped up with a double-double by scoring 19 points, 15 rebounds and 4 assists for the winners and Eric Schmalz chipped in 11 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Four Reinar Halliku players scored in double figures. The best for the losing side was Erkki Sillamaa with 20 points and the former international Rain Veideman (192-1991) scored 14 points. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Reinar Halliku moved-up to seventh place, which they share with Tamsalu and Rae Koss. Loser Haljala keeps the fifth position with four games lost. They share it with Eesti M.. Reinar Halliku will meet higher ranked Eesti M. (#5) in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Haljala will play against Haapsalu and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Haljala: S.Erkki 20+3reb+3ast, R.Veideman 14+4reb+2ast, R.Oliver 13+1ast, L.Taevon 7+4reb+1ast, R.Gregor 6+3reb, M.Marcus 2
Reinar Halliku: T.Raadik 19+15reb+4ast, R.Rumm 16+4reb+1ast, T.Perv 12+3reb+1ast, E.Schmalz 11+8reb+5ast, K.Parnpuu 9, D.Beilinson 9+2reb+1ast

Rock Tartu - Audentese 92-79

The game between closely ranked teams ended with 11th ranked Audentese's (1-7) road loss to tenth ranked Rock Tartu (3-6) 79-92 on Friday. Rock Tartu looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. Andre Paidre stepped up and scored 27 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists for the winners and Sten-Kaarel Kuimet chipped in 20 points and 9 assists. The best for the losing side was Holger Suurorg with 17 points and Jesper Roman scored 13 points, 6 assists and 4 steals. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Rock Tartu maintains tenth place with 3-6 record. Audentese lost seventh consecutive game. They keep the eleventh position with seven games lost. Rock Tartu will meet league's second-placed Paide VW on the road in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Audentese will play against the league's leader Rapla (#1) where they are definitely not considered as a favorite in this game either.
Top scorers:
Audentese: S.Holger 17+3reb+3ast, R.Jesper 13+4reb+6ast, P.Andreas 12+8reb+1ast, S.Rando 11+3reb+3ast, K.Oliver 9+5reb+2ast, I.Robin-Mattias 8+3reb+1ast
Rock Tartu: A.Paidre 27+6reb+7ast, R.Luik 23+8reb+1ast, S.Kuimet 20+4reb+9ast, S.Jarve 14+5reb+1ast, G.Piil 5+6reb+2ast, E.Ranna 3+5reb+2ast

Ulikool/Estiko - Tamsalu 84-73

Another exciting game was a derby match between two teams from Tartu: Ulikool/Estiko (#4) and Tamsalu (#8). Ulikool/Estiko (6-3) won against visiting Tamsalu (4-5) 84-73. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Tamsalu. Ulikool/Estiko forced 21 Tamsalu turnovers. Their players were unselfish on offense dishing 21 assists. It was a good game for Herman Tamm who led his team to a victory with 24 points and 4 assists. Vladyslav Sinnik contributed with a double-double by scoring 13 points and 11 rebounds for the winners. Four Ulikool/Estiko players scored in double figures. Sven Kaldre (197-1991) answered with 22 points and Patrick Malm added 17 points in the effort for Tamsalu. Tamsalu's coach Rauno Pehka rotated eleven players in this game, but that didn't help. Ulikool/Estiko moved-up to third place, which they share with Kadrina. Tamsalu at the other side dropped to the seventh position with five games lost. They share it with Rae Koss and Reinar Halliku. Ulikool/Estiko will play against Kadrina (#3) at home in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Tamsalu will play against Rae Koss (#9) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Tamsalu: L.Meiko 22+4reb+2ast, M.Patrick 17+2reb+2ast, A.Birk 12+6reb, L.Jaan Erik 5+2reb, K.Daniel 5+1reb+4ast, T.Hugo 4+6reb+1ast
Ulikool/Estiko: H.Tamm 24+1reb+4ast, R.Savi 14+9reb, V.Sinnik 13+11reb+2ast, V.Karl 10+4reb+1ast, G.Vendla 6+1reb, M.Tulubenski 6+2reb

Eesti M. - Paide VW 74-98

The game in supposed to be also quite interesting. Third ranked Paide VW (6-2) played at the court of 5th ranked Eesti M. (5-4). Paide VW smashed Eesti M. 98-74 on Friday. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Eesti M.. Paide VW looked well-organized offensively handing out 28 assists. Georg Allemann stepped up and scored 22 points and 7 rebounds for the winners and Finnish point guard Kiur-Thomas Vehmanen (180-2000, agency: Starting 5) chipped in 10 points, 8 rebounds and 11 assists. Five Paide VW players scored in double figures. Paide VW's coach Mart Rohlin felt very confident that he used entire bench which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The best for the losing side was Lauri Mets with a double-double by scoring 12 points and 11 rebounds and scored 14 points and 6 assists. Paide VW moved-up to second place. Loser Eesti M. keeps the fifth position with four games lost. They share it with Haljala. Paide VW will meet at home Rock Tartu (#10) in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Eesti M. will play against Reinar Halliku (#8) and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Eesti M.: R.Joosep 15+6reb+2ast, V.Kristofer 14+4reb+6ast, M.Lauri 12+11reb+2ast, O.Argo 9+4reb+4ast, J.Joonas 7+5reb, K.Christofer 7+3reb+1ast
Paide VW: G.Allemann 22+7reb+1ast, S.Viilup 16+3reb+2ast, M.Ruubel 13+6reb+5ast, J.Aniste 13+3reb+5ast, V.Kiur-Thomas 10+8reb+11ast, R.Kramm 9