Zenit defeated Samara in St. Petersburg – 96:58 (29:14, 28:14, 15:16, 24:14).
Game progress
From the very first minutes, the St. Petersburg team had the initiative. Sergey Karasev and Kyle Kuric three-pointers gave the hosts a double-digit lead – 14:3. The hosts sharpshooters (11 of 15 three-pointers), bigmen three-pointers and defense increased the lead throughout the first half. The St. Petersburg team had a huge lead by the halfitme – 57:28.
In the second half, the hosts slowed down, ut there was no intrigue. Samara couldn’t score at all. In the end, Zenit didn’t make it to the 100, but still got the biggest win of the season.
X-factor
The rivals came to this game as the best (Samara) and fourth (Zenit) League teams in three-point percentage. As a result, three-ppointers determined tha game result. The St. Petersburg team repeated the team’s season-high in three-pointers made with 16 of 26 (61.5%).
Fact
After a long absence due to injury, Zenit’s Thomas Huertel returned. The French guard played 20 minutes and made 6 of 10 shots from the game, 17 points and 10 assists. It was his first double-double of the season.
Leaders
Zenit: Kyle Kuric (20), Tomas Heurtel (17 + 10 assists), Bojan Dubljevic (12), Sergey Karasev (10).
Samara: Javontae Hawkins (20), Mikhail Kulagin (14).
What’s next
Zenit (11-4): December 10 on the road against CSKA
Samara (7-8): December 11 at home versus Runa.
