Lokomotiv Kuban defeated PARMA in Krasnodar – 112:85 (36:29, 31:22, 14:25, 31:9).
Game progress
Just 30 seconds after the start, the guests’ head coach Evgeny Pashutin was forced to take a timeout. PARMA started the game with 3 turnovers, and Okaro White created the difference – 5:0.
The emotional shakeup cheered up the Perm team for a while. The guests looked good against Loko in an open offensive game. But the Krasnodar team took a double-digit lead for the first time in the game – 39:29.
The hosts felt very confident in the fast-paced game. The Krasnodar team controlled the end of the second quarter. DeVaughn Akoon-Purce three-pointers allowed Loko to have a comfortable 16-point lead by the halftime – 67:51.
In the third quarter, the Perm team finally managed to slow down the pace of the hosts offense. And that immediately changed the game. The Krasnodar team offense lost its former efficiency, which the guests did not fail to lose such chance. After Richard Solomon dunk, the difference was reduced to just 1 shot – 76:78.
Key moment
But the Krasnodar team still didn’t let the opponent to catch up. Long-range shots by Barford and Akoon-Purcell, and passes by Vladislav Emchenko and Andrey Martiuk gave Loko a comfortable lead – 88:76. The hosts did not let the lead slip away and took the win.
X-factor
The hosts offense showed its hihg efficiency in this game. Loko set new Playoffs high 112 points, 25 offensive rebounds and 29 assists. At the same time, the hosts repeated the League season-high 17 three-pointers made.
Fact
Lokomotiv Kuban set the VTB League Playoffs all-time high in points scored in a half (67), and also repeated the League record for points in a single Playoffs game (112).
Karvel Anderson made his debut for the new team. The newcomer scored 12 points (4 three-pointers). Anderson continues his battle with Xavier Rathan-Mayes for the VTB League record in three-pointers in a single season. After the first Playoffs games, both guards have 121 long range shots each.
Leaders
Lokomotiv Kuban: DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell (20), Jaylen Barford (15 + 5 rebounds + 8 assists), Maurice Ndour (14 + 7 rebounds), Andrey Martiuk (13 + 9 rebounds), Karvel Anderson (12), Okaro White (11).
PARMA: B.J. Johnson (22), Stanislav Ilnitsky (18), Ruslan Abdulbasirov (15 + 8 rebounds), C.J. Bryce (11).
What’s next
April 25 in Krasnodar.
