Promo
Big-time basketball is back after a long offseason with the traditional Super Cup, now in its sixth edition. The League has put together a stylish video:
Game Opener
The first game of the Super Cup displayed UNICS against Zenit—last season’s semifinalists, who faced off in the 2026 playoff finals, a series that went the full seven games.
This new matchup between the fierce rivals proved to be just as hard-fought. The Kazan club underwent significant changes over the summer but emerged victorious once again.
The key to their success was their dominance on the boards (47-36 in rebounds) and their field goal percentage (43.8% versus 34.7% for the St. Petersburg team). UNICS controlled the game for most of the match and held off the blue-white-and-blue team’s late surge.
On an individual level, it was the three star rookies of the white-and-green team who stood out: former Zenit player Luka Šamanic, Brendan Adams, and Xavier Raten-Mays.
UNICS – Zenit – 78–73 (24–18, 19–21, 21–14, 14–20)
UNICS: Luka Šamanic (17 points, 9 rebounds), Brendan Adams (16 points, 6 assists), Xavier Rathan-Mayes (15 points, 5 rebounds)
Zenit: Ike Iroegbu (22 points), Georgy Zhbanov (17 points)
Quote of the game
UNICS forward Mikhail Belenitskii on how the team played to the crowd while also getting the win :
– Starting with a win over Zenit in a tense finish is a great way to kick off the Super Cup. We prepared as seriously as possible. At times, we probably could have played a little better to make it less nerve-wracking, but for the fans’ sake, it was fine to keep the score close.
The Return
Alex Poythress played for the first time since October 2025, when he was sidelined with a torn cruciate ligament in his knee. He enters the new season as the team’s captain. Alex hasn’t lost any of his athleticism during his forced absence.
Remembrance
The VTB United League has designated the 2026–27 season as the “Year of Remembrance for Sergei Ivanov”—the leader who was instrumental in the League’s founding. All major individual awards, including the Super Cup MVP, will be named in honor of Sergei Borisovich.
CSKA’s First Win
The reigning Super Cup champion suffered four losses in four preseason games. And yet, the Army Men came out with a different mindset for their first meaningful game, and Melo Trimble returned from a muscle injury. It wasn’t easy, and to make matters worse, the visitors from the capital demonstrated an excellent level of teamwork for this stage of the season, significantly outpacing CSKA in assists—24 to 11.
But the depth of the roster and the individual skill of the Army team, led by the unstoppable United League MVP, made the difference. The Red-and-Blues pulled ahead by 10 points by the end of the first quarter and controlled the game from there, avoiding a nail-biting finish.
CSKA – Igokea – 92:81 (27:17, 28:26, 18:13, 19:25)
CSKA: Melo Trimble (28), Livio Jean-Charles (18 + 9 rebounds)
Igokea: Strahinja Gavrilović (18), Roman Penn (14 + 10 assists), Nate Pierre-Louis (14)
Key Moment
It’s September, but Antonius Cleveland is already in top form.
Hero of the Game
CSKA guard Melo Trimble wasn’t able to fully prepare for the Super Cup, but he was the top scorer of the day (28 points).
“This is my first preseason game, so it was especially tough—physically demanding—but we won—our first win since coming back from vacation—so the mood is good. But we need to play better. Can I say I’m 100% ready? I’m close, very close. In fact, I’ll be there tomorrow.” Who’s up next for us, Lokomotiv? I’ll be ready. Although it’ll be a tough game. They’re really fired up to face us, the defending champions who beat them in last year’s playoffs. I know they’ve been watching us for the past couple of weeks and preparing. But so have we. Our first preseason win has given us confidence, and we’ll keep getting better.
