Lokomotiv-Kuban Russia defeated Astana Kazakhstan at home, 79-78 (19-12, 19-18, 24-18, 17-30).
Top Scorers
Lokomotiv-Kuban: Joe Ragland (29 + 5 ast), Mardy Collins (14), Vladimir Ivlev (10)
Astana: Justin Carter (26 + 5 ast + 5 stl), Malcolm Grant (19)
Story
Lokomotiv-Kuban nearly let a double-digit lead slip away in the closing minutes, but Joe Ragland’s 29 points and two big stops down the stretch proved enough to give Krasnodar the win.
Both teams were in search of momentum. Lokomotiv hadn’t won in the League since late January, while back-to-back losses to PARMA and Nizhny Novgorod had damaged Astana’s playoff hopes.
Lokomotiv’s defense was the story in the first half. The home team limited Astana to 30 points and entered the break with an eight-point advantage, 38-30.
Krasnodar stretched the lead to 14 in the 3rd quarter, knocking down four of five 3-pointers, including a pair from Chris Babb.
But Astana refused to fold. The visitors caught fire from beyond the arc, draining six triples to cut the deficit to two with 2:26 remaining, 77-75.
After Babb missed a three-point attempt for Krasnodar, Malcolm Grant had a chance to give Astana the lead, but his 3-pointer was off target and Ragland scored at the other end to make it a four-point game.
Lokomotiv would not score again and with 30 seconds remaining, Grant cut the deficit to one with another triple.
Mardy Collins missed at the other end, giving the visitors the ball back with eight seconds on the clock. But Astana failed to even take a shot before the buzzer sounded. Despite surrendering 30 points in the final period, Loko’s defense held firm on the final possession and secured a valuable win.
Krasnodar improves to 13-5 faces Zenit in a battle for 3rd place next weekend. Astana drops to 6-13, a game and a half back of 8th place.
Stat
+22 – Lokomotiv’s bench outscored the Kazakh reserves handily.
Quotes
Lokomotiv-Kuban head coach Sasa Obradovic:
– As expected, we were thinking ahead a little and distracted by our upcoming games: Zenit and the EuroCup finals. But I don’t accept those excuses as a coach, if it can be considered an excuse. In the 4th quarter, our opponent got hot and made a lot of shots, but we also allowed them to do so and get comfortable. We won today, but I can’t say I’m satisfied with how we played.
Astana head coach Mikhail Karpenko:
– Not everything worked today. We were ready for Loko to play physical. They were able to do that. We scored mostly on one-on-one situations. We didn’t create much in the first half, but kept competing even when our opponent led by 15-16 points. All we needed was three stops, three baskets, and we were back in the game. We started moving the ball better and created opportunities for our shooters. Though we had the final possession, we couldn’t secure the win. I think we could have won this game.
Up Next
Lokomotiv-Kuban: April 7 away vs. Zenit
Astana: April 8 away vs. Enisey
Images of the Game
