CSKA beat Tsmoki-Minsk on the road – 94:91 (18:18, 20:30, 26:18, 30:25
Top Scorers
Tsmoki-Minsk: Dominez Burnett (20 + 5 rebounds + 6 assists), Alexandre Gavrilovic (19 + 7 rebounds), Maksim Salash (18 + 7 rebounds).
CSKA: Darrun Hilliard (21 + 5 rebounds), Mike James (21 + 5 assists), Kosta Koufos (18 + 8 rebounds).
Story
Tsmoki-Minsk were on the last place before the game but in good mood – in last game they gained the victory in Perm. Red-blues, who played in Euroleague with Milan last Thursday were second. After a few makes by Maksim Salash Minsk were up with 3 minutes left in the quarter – 14:7. CSKA with Kosta Koufos efforts tied the game in the end of the quarter – 18:18. The second period was much more fun to see. In its very beginning Branko Mirkovic and Alexandre Gavlilovic made a 10-0 run, and in the middle of the quarter the spirited Dragons’ lead was 14 points – 35:21. Andrey Vorontsevich answered with 8 points in one minute but it wasn’t enough to reduce the gap. Tsmoki were leading after the first half in double figures – 48:38.
The third quarter was given to CSKA. Red-blues paced up after five minutes in the second half when Koufos, who was supported by Darrun Hilliard from the perimeter started outplaying his rivals in the paint times and times again. However, Tsmoki got the last word. Gavrilovic made a spectacular contested dunk with Semen Antonov committing a foul – 65:63 the hosts lead after 3 quarters.
Key moment
The game was decided in the clutch. CSKA managed to take control over the game in a tight game via two consecutive threes by Nikita Kurbanov – 89:84 with one and a half minute left on the shotclock. Tsmoki reduced CSKA’s lead by Gavrilovic’s free throws and had chances on the last minute when Kurbanov missed his first three of the night. At this point Daniel Hackett collected offensive rebound that was a key-factor. New possession was held by CSKA’s scoring leader Mike James who proved his level with cold-blooded clutch shots multiple times – 92:86 with 25 seconds left. Belarus didn’t give up but James hit charity stripe shots after an intentional foul and let Russia keep the lead – 94:91.
Stat
25 – CSKA bench score advantage (64:39).
Hero
Kosta Koufos. The center had been steady all game long and hit a few critical shots. Koufos drained 8/9 field goals scoring 18 points and 8 rebounds.
Next
Tsmoki-Minsk: January 6 at Zenit
ЦСКА: January 6 vs Khimki
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