Zenit defeated MBA-MAI on the road – 89:68 (25:16, 22:22, 23:22, 19:6).
Game progress
The start of the game was equal, the hosts responded to the St. Petersburg team with Makar Konovalov 10 points in the quarter. Soon the guard went to the bench, and Xavier Pascual utilized Alex Poythress and Omari Spellman. The center duo gave Zenit the advantage in the paint, which helped the guests to make a 13:4 run to take a double-digit lead – 32:18. But Vasily Karasev team got back into the game after the same Konovalov appeared. After a series of long-range shots, the Moscow team was able to cut the deficit by the end of the first half – 47:40.
Key moment
The third quarter began with Daniil Kasatkin long-range shots and Vladislav Trushkin drives into the paint, which tied the score. Zenit was soon able to stabilize their game. First, Xavier Moon scored several times on fast break lay-ups and regained the lead for his team. And in the opening minutes of the final quarter, Poythress and Dwayne Bacon gave the St. Petersburg team an 11:2 run, after which a 17-point lead.
The Moscow team was unable develop a comeback, and the guests confidently took the win.
X-factor
An important reason for Zenit win was bigmen performance. Alex Poythress scored 15 points, while Andrey Zubkov and Danil Pevnev duo combined for 11 points. The St. Petersburg team also outscored the opponent in prebounds (42 rebounds vs. 29) and blocks.
Facts
After this game, Zenit has the second best winning streak after CSKA (7 games), while MBA-MAI has the second longest losing streak (5 games).
Zenit played its best defensive quarter of the season. Xavier Pascual team allowed the opponent to score only 6 points during the fourth quarter.
Leaders
MBA-MAI: Daniil Kasatkin (16 + 6 rebounds), Makar Konovalov (14), Vladislav Trushkin (12 + 6 rebounds).
Zenit: Dwayne Bacon (26 + 6 assists + 5 rebounds), Alex Poythress (15 + 7 rebounds), Trent Frazier (14), Xavier Moon (10).
What’s next
MBA-MAI: November 17 on the road versus Samara
Zenit: November 17 on the road against PARMA.
