On Sunday, as part of the regular season Avtodor will host UNICS.
Sunday, October 24
Avtodor (Russia) — UNICS (Russia)
Time: 15:00 (14:00 Moscow time)
Location: Russia, Saratov, LDS Cristall
Broadcast: TV Start, League website
Rivalry history: 13 games, UNICS – 12 wins, Avtodor – 1 win
Avtodor: For the first and only time in its history, Avtodor won UNICS back in 2015. They will try to correct the balance of wins and losses this Sunday. The ganeral rehearsal was the game within the FIBA Europe Cup, in which Avtodor beat the Italian Reggio Emilia. This win for the Saratov team has already become the second in the European tournament. Kenny Chery reinforced his reputation as the team leaders in this game with his performance – 21 points and 8 assists.
UNICS: The Kazan team continues to lead the United League standings. But in the Euroleague this week, UNICS lost to the reigning champion – Anadolu Efes. However, in this game the battle turned out to be really stubborn, and the Turks were able to gain lead only in the end with a 3 points difference. The game with the Efes was a long-awaited debut for the star newcomer O.J Mayo. Of course, the American has yet to adapt to European basketball — Mayo played only 10 minutes and got only one steal. So in the game with Avtodor, Mayo can open the account of his European points scored.
What to follow: Avtodor boasts an amazing offencive stability at the start of the season: in all five games (including FIBA Europe Cup), the Saratov team scored from 90 to 100 points. On the other hand, even after Dimitris Priftis departure, UNICS demonstrates the usual level of play in defense (76.7 missed points per game). The rivalry between the best offencive and the fourth defensive can become a real battle of ice and flame.
