BEIJING (China) - Rytas Vilnius were on fire to start their FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2026 campaign, defeating the RSSB Tigers in Group A, while the new look Beijing Royal Fighters kept the home crowd entertained for 40 minutes in their matchup with Boca Juniors in Group B.
The Shanghai Sharks and NBA G League United enjoyed a day off, as they take the court on Day 2.
Reminder, the top two teams from both groups will move to the Semi-Finals.
Rytas Vilnius 107-89 RSSB Tigers
The opening game of the program saw another dominant performance by the Basketball Champions League Europe winners Rytas Vilnius, carrying their fine form from last season over to the start of the new chapter.
The RSSB Tigers weren't out of the game, especially in the first half as they exchanged the lead eight times with the Lithuanians, with the scores tied a further eight times.
But once Teafale Lenard Jr and Craig Randall II picked up their third fouls late in the first half, the doors were wide open for Rytas to go on a 15-0 run and take the lead for good.
It ballooned to 23 points at one point in the second half, with the 18-year-old Ignas Urbonas detonating a ferocious dunk to announce his arrival to the big stage with 8 points on the day.
Coach Nedas Pacevicius had six men in double figures, headlined by Kay Bruhnke's 22 points and 9 rebounds.
Club legend Gytis Radzevicius marked his return to the club with 8 points, and had the highest +/- of all players. Rytas were +30 in his 19 minutes of work.
Craig Randall II had 20 for the Tigers, but Rytas held him to 5-of-21 shooting from the field.
Beijing Royal Fighters 78-88 Boca Juniors
Even with the home fans showing up at the National Indoor Stadium to back the Royal Fighters, the Basketball Champions League Americas winners were quick to make this encounter a one-way street.
The fact that made their 51 first half points even more impressive is that they only made two three-pointers in the first 20 minutes, but still pushed the tempo and sprinted every chance they got down the floor.
The big three were all on fire, as Jose Vildoza, Leonardo Lema and Francisco Caffaro combined for 30 points in the first two quarters.
Midway through the third quarter, the gap was 20 points, but a hearty effort saw Grant Riller gather seven straight points to bring the Royal Fighters to -13 with seven minutes left to play.
However, there's a reason why Francisco Caffaro was the MVP of the Finals in the BCL Americas last season. The big man had all the right moves in all the right places to stop the run, securing a comfy margin to finish out the game without stressing.
He did suffer an injury and had to leave the game after 22:42 of playing time, but still managed to pick up 17 points and 10 rebounds. Lema had a nearly identical line with 17 and 9, while Vildoza finished with 10 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
For the hosts, Grant Riller had 22 of his 24 points in the second half.
They will be up against the G Leaguers already on Wednesday, while the BCLA champs take a day off.