Pari Nizhny Novgorod beat CSKA at home – 77:75 (18:19, 10:18, 24:20, 25:18).
Game progress
The first quarter was equal. Only at the start of the second quarter one of the teams manage to take the lead. Great defense and accurate shots by Anton Astapkovich, Semen Antonov and Casper Ware allowed CSKA to take the lead – 26:18. In a tight game, the Moscow team managed to hold on the lead. Despite a spectacular three-pointer by Evgenii Baburin, the guests had a 9-point lead by hafltime – 37:28.
In the third quarter, the Volga team turned on the offense. Series of made shots turned into a comeback. After a long-range shot by Aleksandr Khomenko, the score wad tied for the first time since the first half – 52:52.
Key moment
The game went into clutch. In the last 3 minutes, the lead changed 8 times. But the hosts still had the last word.
Aubrey Dawkins was the hero. The Volga team forward scored several important shots in the clutch. In the end, he had the decisive possession. With his team trailing by 1 point, Dawkins made a tightly contested three-pointer over Nikita Kurbanov and brought Pari NN a win over CSKA.
X-factor
Nizhny Novgorod outscored the opponent in rebounding (46-34). And the hosts set a season-high 23 offensive rebounds (CSKA had 6). Combined with less turnovers (10-16), the Volga team had 23 extra possessions.
Fact
This was the hosts’ 4th win against CSKA in the VTB League. Nizhny Novgorod previous win was in the Quarterfinals in May 2021. In the regular season, the Volga team defeated the Moscow team for the first time since October 2015.
Leaders
Pari Nizhny Novgorod: Aubrey Dawkins (21 + 5 rebounds), Nemanja Djurisic (12), Zach Nutall (11 + 7 rebounds), Aleksandr Chadov (3 + 12 rebounds).
CSKA: Melo Trimble (16 + 5 rebounds), Livio Jean-Charles (14 + 6 rebounds), Casper Ware (12), Nikita Kurbanov (10).
What’s next
Pari Nizhny Novgorod: October 9 on the road against Zenit
CSKA: October 13 at home versus Zenit.
