Khimki Moscow Region defeated Kalev in Tallinn, 84-77 (17-19, 21-13, 20-21, 26-24).
Top Scorers
Kalev: Cedric Simmons (15+10 reb), Demonte Harper (15+9 reb+11 ast), Mark Tollefsen (14), Vitali Liutych (14+5 reb)
Khimki: Jacob Pullen (24), Sergey Monia (16), E.J. Rowland (13+5 reb+7 ast), Markel Brown (12)
Turning Point
Kalev never led in the second half, trailing by as much as 13 midway through the 3rd quarter.
3-point shooting and stingy defense helped the home team mount a comeback. Kalev outscored Khimki 28-16 over 12 minutes to cut the deficit to one, 70-69, on a Mark Tollefsen ‘3’.
With three and a half minutes remaining, the Estonians had a chance for a huge upset, but Moscow Region wouldn’t lose.
First, Sergey Monia drained a ‘3’ to put Khimki up by four, then Jacob Pullen, who finished with a game-high 24, converted four straight free throws to make it a six-point game.
The visitors ultimately made 11 of 12 free throws down the stretch to secure the win.
Star
Jacob Pullen. He didn’t start, but ended up with 24 points on 7-14 shooting (4-9 from downtown) to go with a 6-6 showing at the line.
Up Next
Khimki: January 8 at Zenit
Kalev: January 5 at VEF
