Khimki defeated Enisey on the road, 104-64 (27-11, 34-22, 30-20, 13-11).
Top Scorers
Enisey: Alexey Vzdykhalkin (16+5 reb), Suleiman Braimoh (10)
Khimki: E.J. Rowland (19+6 reb+5 ast), Alexey Shved (19), Marko Todorovic (15+6 reb), Egor Vialtsev (12)
Turning Point
Searching for a win to close the regular season and clinch the three-seed in the postseason, Khimki took a commanding 27-11 lead in the 1st quarter and never looked back.
Knowing that a Khimki win ensured a re-match in the first round of the playoffs, Enisey didn’t force the issue once the game got out of hand. The home team trailed by 24 points early in the 2nd quarter and never got closer than 15 the rest of the way.
Marko Todorovic had a big first half for Khimki, scoring 13 points as the visitors conserved energy, getting 11 minutes or more from 11 different players.
Enisey was also conservative. Only Vladimir Pichkurov played more than 23 minutes as Oleg Okulov went deep into his bench, getting 12 men into the game for extended action.
It will be fascinating to see what happens when these two teams meet in the postseason a few days from now. Does Krasnoyarsk have a few tricks up its sleeve, despite today’s blowout defeat?
Stat
0 – Enisey’s streak resets to zero, after winning five in a row late in the season.
Video
Enisey vs Khimki one minute highlights 📹 pic.twitter.com/I0s78Ndwv1
— VTB United League (@VTBUL) April 23, 2017
Quotes
Khimki head coach Dusko Ivanovic:
– Enisey is a very good team and finished 6th in the regular season. They almost always win at home. I think our opponent was first and foremost thinking about the upcoming playoff games. We’ll see each other there.
Enisey head coach Oleg Okulov:
– The game did not work out today. Above all, we didn’t want to win as much as Khimki. Khimki’s desire to be in the EuroLeague proved stronger. We made the playoffs and await a series with Khimki. It will be very difficult, but I’m confident we’ll play better than we did today.
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Up Next
Enisey: Playoff quarterfinals vs. Khimki
Khimki: Playoff quarterfinals vs. Enisey
