CSKA defeated Zenit in the 3rd Place Series Game 2 – 85:61 (16-21, 19-15, 27-18, 23-7).
Game progress
Zenit began the 3rd Place Series with the Game 1 win in Moscow. So, CSKA allowed the guests to score only 2 points in the first 6 minutes and had a 10-2 run. At that moment, Xavi Pascual took a timeout and managed to find the right words. After that, the guests answered with three-pointers and eventually won the opening quarter – 21:16. The second quarter didn’t have many sudden changes. The Army team had leveled the game and Zenit got a 1-point lead by the hafltime – 36:35.
Toward the end of the third quarter, CSKA pulled ahead and attempted to break away once again. Anton Astapkovic scored 8 points in 3.5 minutes, and the hosts closed the quarter with a 10-0 run, their lead was 11 points before the final quarter.
Key moment
CSKA left Zenit with no chance to safe the game dominating the fourth quarter. Solid defense and rebounding allowed the Army team to start the fourth quarter with an 8-2 run, after which the hosts continued to build their lead. The Series moves to St. Petersburg with the score 1-1.
Fact
Zenit scored only 7 points in the fourth quarter, the team’s worst result in the 2023 Playoffs. Earlier, the St. Petersburg team failed to score more that 10 points per quarter only once (9 points in the Seriew with UNICS).
Key factor
Zenit lacked aggression on offense. Tht team scored only 8 free-throws (5 out of 8). CSKA players had 29 attempts (18 of 29).
Leaders
CSKA: Casper Ware (19), Dejan Davidovac (14 + 5 rebounds), DeVontae Cacok (12 + 5 rebounds), Dallas Moore (11), Nikola Milutinov (10 + 7 rebounds).
Zenit: Andrey Zubkov (17), Trent Frazier (14), Thomas Heurtel (10 + 6 assists).
Next game: 10 May in St Petersburg
