Avtodor won the road game against Astana, rising to the 2nd place in the Group B – 80:73 (15:14, 20:18, 22:22, 23:19).
Game progress
Astana (5-21) and Avtodor (11-16) had 5th and 4th places in the Group B. The Saratov team ended a 4-game winning home streak against Enisey, the team fell back to the 4th place in the standings.
The first half was equal. The teams exchanged points, but performance was not so high. Kwame Vaughn and Markell Johnson helped the hosts, the Saratov team was led by Brandon Garrett. Avtodorwon the first half with Sean Armand three-poiner buzzer-beater – 35:32.
In the third quarter, the teams played more cheerfully. The Saratov team tried to take the lead, but Astana cope with it, Avtodor had a 3-point lead before the last quarter.
Key moment
There was no clutch ending. In the middle of the fourth quarter, Malik Newman and Danilo Nikolic made a 9:0 run with 1:40 left – 78:67. Avtodor got the win and took revenge for the December road lose. The Saratov team won 5 out of 6 games.
Fact
The Kazakh team has 6 more games left after today’s game, but it will finish the season in 5th place in the Group B. Astana lost chances for the playoffs, but also broke away from MINSK. The lack of pressure and freshness helped Oleg Kiselev team to play freely with the Saratov team.
Key factor
Danilo Nikolic set a career high in rebounds (12, 4 are offensive), which greatly helped the Saratov team – 41-29.
Leaders
Astana: Valery Likhodey (18 + 6 rebounds), Markell Johnson (18 + 5 rebounds), Kwame Vaughn (11)
Avtodor: Brandon Garrett (18 + 9 rebounds), Malik Newman (18), Danilo Nikolic (14 + 12 rebounds), Rade Zagorac (14), Sean Armand (10 + 5 rebounds + 6 assists)
Next games
Astana: home game versus Samara on March 13
Avtodor: road game against MINSK on March 12
