The army team put the rivals in their places – Newspaper Kommersant No. 42 (7487) of 03/14/2023
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In the central match of the game week of the VTB United League regular championship, the reigning champion of the Zenit tournament hosted the multiple champion CSKA. For Petersburgers, this match, in addition to the opportunity to upset the principal opponent once again, had a tournament value. The defeat in it deprived Zenit of the chances for second place in the regular season. And so it happened – the hosts lost with a score of 69:72 and will not rise above the third place.
CSKA solved all its tasks in the regular league season ahead of schedule. Three weeks before its completion, the army team became inaccessible to their pursuers. This seemed to allow the head coach of the army team, Emil Raikovich, not to attach much importance to the game. But the specialist himself noted before the match that his team would still make “every effort to try to win.” “We will also solve our own problems on the eve of the most important stage of the season – to improve physical fitness, keep the game rhythm,” Rajkovic told the official CSKA website.
But for Zenit, the prospects for second place in the regular season largely depended on the outcome of the confrontation with the army team. Javi Pascual’s wards had a chance to press UNICS. Yes, the Petersburgers could not boast that in the race for second place the initiative belonged to them. In order to get past Kazan, Zenit had to win all the remaining games, including, of course, the last round match against UNICS, and hope that Kazan would also stumble in the game against Lokomotiv-Kuban. Far from 100%, but still a very real option. Especially considering that UNICS has not been stable lately.
Already the first minutes of the confrontation showed that Rajkovic’s words about CSKA’s serious attitude to the game were not just uttered.
The army team really acted in a combat or close to such mode, very effectively using a bunch of Casper Weir and Nikola Milutinov. Especially often Weir delivered troubles to Zenit. It seems that everyone has long been accustomed to the fact that, despite his modest dimensions (height 178 cm), he can not only shoot from a distance, but is also dangerous under the ring. But all the same, Weir’s runs into the “paint” over and over again became a surprise for the defense of “Zenith”. However, the hosts responded to the attacks of the guests, even if they did not have long-range shots. But not entirely reliable. As soon as we relaxed a little, CSKA had a nine-point lead as if out of nowhere. With such odds that do not seem to amaze the imagination, the army team can work very well, forcing the opponent to give all the best in order to eliminate the gap, but whenever the goal seems to be close, pushing the bar back again. It’s exhausting. But Zenit managed to avoid this trap. Trent Frazier and Trey Tompkins joined the game at the right time, and by the big break, Zenit leveled the game.
This equality lasted surprisingly long. For two quarters of the team, as if by agreement, maintained a balance on the site. Neither Zenit, in which Fraser still stood out, nor CSKA, in which Ware still did not calm down, managed to break away further than at least a couple of attacks. Toward the end of the match, CSKA seemed to have something similar to a tangible gap, but Dmitry Kulagin’s two long-range attacks in a row immediately followed, restoring the status quo. And in this mode, the teams naturally went to the ending.
A little more successful in it were the army team. CSKA won – 72:69 – and, thus, placed all the teams from the top 3 of the table in their places. The army team is first, UNICS is second, Zenit is third.
VTB United League Championship. Second phase
Group A Pari Nizhny Novgorod – Lokomotiv Kuban 75:70. UNICS-MBA 73:58. Zenit-CSKA 69:72.
Leaderboard
I V P % of wins
1. CSKA 30 28 2 93
2. UNICS 30 24 6 80
3. Zenit 30 21 9 70
4. Paris Nizhny Novgorod 29 17 12 59
5. Lokomotiv Kuban 30 16 14 53
6. MBA 29 13 16 45
Group B. Parma-Pari – Enisey 79:78. Minsk-Avtodor 81:65. “Astana” – “Samara” 73:92.
Leaderboard
1. Parma-Pari 29 14 15 48
2. Samara 30 13 17 43
3. Avtodor 29 12 17 41
4. Enisey 30 12 18 40
5. Astana 28 5 23 18
6. Minsk 30 2 28 7
Points scored by teams in the first stage are taken into account. According to the results of the second stage, all six teams of group A and the two best teams of group B advance to the 1/4 finals.
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