Zenit will host UNICS in the Game of the Week on Wednesday.
Place: Russia, St. Petersburg, CSC Arena
Time: December 18, 2024 (19:30)
Broadcast: Match TV, League website
Rivalry
The teams finished last year’s regular season in the Top 2, but were unable to prevent CSKA from becoming champion.
Last season’s regular season series ended with a 3:1, win for UNICS. The St. Petersburg team was able to win once in April.
September was a rich for there teams clashes. First, they played in Kondrashin and Belov Cup final, where Zenit won 63:50. Then got clash in the VTB United League Super Cup, where UNICS stopped the St. Petersburg team winning streak. The group stage game, which determined the finalist, ended 78:72.
The teams finished their September series at Basket Hall in Kazan. Zenit controlled the game, nearly blew a 13-point lead but in the end. After 5 straight points from Dmitry Kulagin, the Kazan team managed to get back into the game – 82:77.
This was not last word by Kulagin. He made another three-pointer in the end of the game, cutting the differential to 1 point. On the return possession, Dwayne Bacon made both free-throw shots – 87:84. UNICS tried to save the game, but Alex Poythress tight defense forced Kulagin to make a difficult shot.
Intrigue
Zenit (17-2) is on a great run. The team has 12 straight wins, including a recent against CSKA. A record-setting winning streak has allowed Zenit to tie the Moscow team in the standings. Now the St. Petersburg team will try to extend that streak to 13 and continue their fight for first place in a crucial rivalry with UNICS (14-5).
The Kazan team is undefeated in games against lower placed teams, but 0-5 against the Top 4. UNICS got 2 losses each to CSKA and Lokomotiv Kuban, and 1 to Zenit. The Kazan team would like to break this streak as soon as possible. Velimir Perasovic team will not play any more direct rivals until the end of the 2024, although a new top rivalry will be on January 5 – the opponent will again be the St. Petersburg team.
Acceptance
After the loss to Loko on December 1, UNICS head coach Velimir Perasovic stated that his team is inferior to its main rivals at this stage. But he promised to improve:
– Unfortunately, it looks like the teams from the Top 3 have more skill than us, because today we tried and did our best. But we didn’t have a chance to react and UNICS lost control. Obviously, the Krasnodar team look better than us at the moment, but we’ll do everything to change this situation.
Hope
Still, there are reasons for optimism for UNICS. In Sunday’s game against Pari Nizhny Novgorod, the Kazan team showed great shape – 102:66.
UNICS scored season-high 102 points. DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell made his first double-double in the League, while Marcos Knight and Andrey Lopatin had the best performances for UNICS.
Perasovic sounded much more optimistic this time around than he did in early December.
– We played one of our best games this season… If we keep it up, we have a great chance to finish the season well. I’ve always said the key in this league is how we will come to the Playoffs.
Blast
Egor Ryzhov, who has spent most of the season on Zenit second team, got his chance against Astana on December 11 and did not let up: 11 points, 5 rebounds and 5 of 9 field-goal made. On Wednesday, Xavier Pascual decided to test the bigman against Enisey. The 20-year-old Russian had the best game of his career: 23 points (8 of 8 field-goal made) and 9 rebounds with 34 eff. points.
Let’s see if Zenit coaching staff will risk and get the young player minutes in the Game of the Week.
Duel
Dwayne Bacon vs. Marcos Knight.
Bacon was one of UNICS’ biggest problems in the September game, when he scored 22 points and 4 assists, and also played a key role in the end. In the recent clash with CSKA, the forward was also a major contributor: 20 points, 5 rebounds. Obviously, he’ll be among the key performers on Wednesday as well. Knight was just getting in shape (7 points, 6 rebounds with 0 of 7 field-goal made) after his injury during the first game of the top clubs, but now this process is completed. Knight had the best scoring performance the game versus Pari NN and in 3 of the last 4 games he scored at least 21 points.
The coaches will rely on the skills of topperformers in this important rivalry, and the Bacon-Knight duo is worth a closer look.
Numbers
– The rivalry history score is 22:20, UNICS leads.
– The highest scoring team of the season Zenit (88.9 points) and the lowest scoring team UNICS (69.5) in the League will play on Wednesday,.
– Andrey Vorontsevich became the second player in VTB League history to get 1,500 career rebounds on Wednesday.
