Avtodor defeated MINSK at home – 81:58 (19:12, 15:11, 22:21, 25:14).
Game progress
The Saratov team regularly used size advantage at the start. The hosts made 9 offensive rebounds in the first quarter and took the lead with Rayshawn Hammonds’ 9 points – 19:12. The guests defended effectively and made 6 steals. A successful stretch helped MINSK cut the difference to 4, but the rest of the first half was still for Avtodor. Brandon Garrett forced Vadzim Stubeda to pick up his third foul and scored 7 points, making the Volga team lead double-digit by halftime – 34:23.
MINSK scored 8 points in a row in less than 2 minutes, forcing Milenko Bogicevic to take a timeout. After that the Saratov team organized an impressive 12:2 run and regained a comfortable lead. The guests were good in offense and scored 22 points in the third quarter, but couldn’t find a way to stop Hammonds. The American bigman play in the paint increased the score difference to 18 by the middle of the fourth quarter. After that, the Belarusian team was unable to make a comeback.
A solid defensive effort combined with three-pointers (including Vitaly Fridzon first three-pointer of the season) allowed the Saratov team to take the 4th straight win.
X-factor
The Volga team dominated in rebounds throughout the game and got 32 more rebounds than the opponent (54 versus 22). At the same time, Avtodor trio Hammonds-Haldeev-Garrett grabbed 22 rebounds, the same number as the entire Belarusian team.
Fact
For Avtodor, the win over MINSK became the 3 straight at the start of the second stage, which gave the team an opportunity to strengthen in play-in zone (10th place). It’s noteworthy that last season the Volga team started in Group B with 4 wins and managed to reach the Playoffs at the end of the second part of the regular season.
Leaders
Avtodor: Rayshawn Hammonds (23 + 11 rebounds), Malik Newman (14 + 6 rebounds), Dusan Beslac (13 + 5 rebounds).
MINSK: Daniil Kasko (12 + 5 rebounds), Daniil Barysevich (12)
What’s next
Avtodor (13-16): March 6 on the road against MBA
MINSK (0-29): March 6 on the road versus Astana.
