Uralmash beat Avtodor on the road – 76:67 (23:16, 19:17, 17:20, 17:14).
Game progress
Ay the start of the game, the teams played thigh defense and allowed to make only difficult shots and were able to score 10 points after 6th minute. Hayden Dalton revitalised the guests off the bench. The American forward and Jeremiah Martin successfully made pick-and-rolls and made a 13:3 run, which let Uralmash to get ahead – 23:16. The Saratov team was able to fix defense and started to get in the paint more. This helped the hosts to tie the score midway through the second quarter. But lack of concentration didn’t let the Saratov team to extend the run – the Volga team made 4 turnovers in 4 minutes and scored 3 points. Uralmash used the situation and got the lead after Jeremiah Martin long-range shot – 42:33.
Key moment
The score difference reached 13 points at the start of second half, then the Yekaterinburg team got into foul trouble. Stanley Whittaker and Tyrell Nelson had 4 fouls each and went to the bench. Avtodor used the situation and made a 14:4 run to restore the tie score – 50:50. But Martin didn’t allow the hosts to get ahead with 9 points in a row.
The guests didn’t let Avtodor to get back into the game. The Yekaterinburg team turned on the defense, the Saratov team made turnovers and Viacheslav Zaitsev made the difference double-digit, which was held till the end of the game.
X-Factor
Uralmash was able to win the game due to good defensive performance in final quarter. The Yekaterinburg team let the opponent make 5 turnovers and only 6 points in 8 minutes of the fourth quarter.
Facts
Jeremiah Martin had his third 30-point game. Uralmash guard is the only VTB League player to have more than 1 game with 30+ points.
The Yekaterinburg team got third win over Avtodor this season. Uralmash winning streak against the Saratov team reached 6 games with the previous season results.
Leaders
Avtodor: Kerem Kanter (14)
Uralmash: Jeremiah Martin (31 + 5 rebounds), Stanley Whittaker (11), Javonte Douglas (10 + 6 rebounds)
What’s next
Avtodor: January 19 at home versus Zenit
Uralmash: January 18 on the road against Pari Niznhy Novgorod
