Perm and St. Petersburg will host 2 regular season games on Wednesday.
PARMA (Perm Region) vs Avtodor (Saratov)
Time: 19:30 (17:30 Moscow time)
Place: Russia, Perm, UDS Molot
Broadcast: Match! Igra, Start, League website
PARMA: The Perm team is going through one of the toughest stretches of the season – Alex Hamilton and Samson Ruzhentsev are still recovering from injuries and a 5-game losing streak has dropped the team to 8th place. However, fans have reason for optimism before the game against a direct rival for a spot in the Top 6. PARMA newcomer Stanley Whittaker scored 27 points in his debut, showing that he is ready to become an important offensive option in the future. Evgeny Pashutin team will also have the home court advantage, which could help the hosts beat Avtodor for the first time this season.
Avtodor: With 4 wins in the last 6 games, Milenko Bogicevic team moved into the Top 6 for the first time in the season. With a win over the Perm team, Avtodor can strengthen the place in the Playoffs chase, so the Volga team will have a special attitude. The season series between the teams is going well – all three games ended with the guests wins. The team roster also inspires confidence: key players are in and Kerem Kanter was included in the Team of the Week.
Zenit (St. Petersburg) vs Samara (Samara Region)
Time: 19:30 (Moscow time)
Place: Russia, St. Petersburg, CSC Arena
Broadcast: Start Triumph, League website
Zenit: With the longest active winning streak in the League (9 games), Zenit continues to chase CSKA, who is ahead in points differential. The clash against Samara is likely to be an opportunity for Xavier Pascual team to close the deficit. In the current season, the St. Petersburg team has won all 3 games with an average difference of 37 points, so Zenit will be the favorites in the upcoming clash.
Samara: The break helped the Volga team – Ilya Platonov returned after almost a year of recovery and added variation to the offense. Samara was able to put up a fight against Avtodor, but still lost due to third quarter breakdown (90-74). Now the team will be tested by one of the League leaders, who has been tough to beat this season. But if Vladislav Konovalov team can maintain the defensive focus as was in the first half against Avtodor, Samara will be able to put up a fight against Zenit.
