Avtodor set scoring-high and beat Astana

Avtodor set scoring-high and beat Astana

Avtodor beat Astana at home – 107:85 (36:16, 14:22, 25:17, 32:30).

Top scorers
Avtodor: Nate Mason (21 + 7 assists), Nikita Mikhailovskii (21 + 4 steals), Zeljko Sakic (15 + 9 rebounds + 7 assists), Markel Starks (14), Drew Gordon (14 + 11 rebounds), Anton Kvitovskikh (13)
Astana: Adonis Thomas (22 + 5 rebounds), Jeremiah Hill (22), Michael Thompson (13 + 13 assists + 5 rebounds)

Story
Both teams started the season with two losses, but Astana improved its tournament position with away victory over Khimki. This unexpected success made Astana the frontrunner of the upcoming game. Especially with players losses of Avtodor right before the game: American forward Ben Emelogu left the club.

And yet, despite the problems, the start of the game was led by the hosts. The individual skill of Nikita Mikhailovskii and Nate Mason (12 points per two) allowed Avtodor to obtain a double-digit lead – 17:7 quite quickly. They didn’t stop there. They showed great scoring. In the first 10 minutes, Avtodor scored 14 of the 22 shots from the field (63%), including 5 of the 7 three-pointers (71%). In the end Mikhailovskii set the lead of his team to +20 with the buzzer – 36:16.

They were unable to maintain their offensive mindset. The second quarter was long held in the exchange mode. But at some point, the guests took the initiative. The 10-point run of Astana at the end of the quarter helped them significantly reduce score deficit before the big break – 38:50. The second half started with the three-pointer by the guard of guests Jeremiah Hill. Only after this Avtodor finally woke up. They were inspired by their big players: the effective actions of Alan Makiev and Zeljko Sakic started the run of Avtodor, and then Anton Kvitkovskikh made his best with 7 scored points.

In the end, comeback hasn’t happened. Astana could not find the key to their offense, and in defense the guests could not cope with the numerous leaders of the rival – 6 players from Avtodor scored more than 12 points. Astana did not come closer than 15 points to the hosts, and Avtodor calmly brought the game to a confident victory.

Hero
Nikita Mikhailovskii along with Nate Mason, became the top scorer on the roster (21 points). The Russian guard also renewed personal records in the league on efficiency (28) and steals (4).

Stat
107 – Avtodor in this meeting updated the record of scoring in the current season.

Comments
Avtodor head coach Gordie Herbert:
— I think we had a great first quarter, and at the beginning of the game, we were at a crazy pace. Several times Astana tried to return to the game, but we were very responsive, united as a team, showed good basketball and confidently led in the score throughout the whole game. Today at the court, the boys showed the results of those 10-12 days of hard training.

Astana head coach Emil Raikovikj:
— Congratulations to Avtodor on the victory – our rival has played great, was extremely motivated from the very beginning. We allowed too many points in the first quarter, after which it was very difficult to return. A close second away game after the victory over Khimki showed that it is too early to relax. We need to work harder, especially in defense, if we want to win.

Next
Avtodor: October 26 at Khimki
Astana: November 1 vs Zenit

Photo22/10/2020 Avtodor-Astana 107:85