UNICS beat Tsmoki-Minsk at home – 98:56 (34:16, 25:18, 14:8, 25:14).
The best scorers
UNICS: Mario Hezonja (25 + 12 rebounds + 12 assists), Andrey Vorontsevich (20 + 5 assists), Tonye Jekiri (11 + 6 rebounds).
Tsmoki-Minsk: Daniil Barysevich (12), Yauheni Beliankou (11 + 6 rebounds), Uladzislau Bliznyuk (9 + 5 assists).
Game progress
UNICS (12-2) came to the first game after the All-Star Game break as the leader of the League with the 5-game winning streak. Tsmoki-Minsk (1-9) took 11th place.
Changes in the roster did not affect the quality of the Kazan team’s game. Led by Mario Hezonja, the Russian team started the game with 16:5 run in 3 minutes and continued to increase momentum. In the first 10 minutes, UNICS made 81% of 2-pointers and 45% of 3-pointers, maintaining a balance between positional play and quick offensive plays, and moved the ball perfectly (10-3 in assists). Only the Croatian forward scored 16 points – the same as all the Minsk team players combined. And after the 1st quarter, the hosts’ lead was 18 points.
In the 2nd quarter, UNICS slightly slowed down the pace, but small run by Tsmoki did not change the game in general. The Kazan team quickly regained control of the game, increased their lead by 7 points and by the halftime led by 25 (59:34).
In the 2nd half , the course did not change. UNICS confidently took the win, which became the 6th in a row for the team.
Hero
Mario Hezonja. The Croatian forward scored a triple-double, an achievement that had previously been made by only 7 players in the League history. Mario has 25 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists. This season, similar stats have already been demonstrated by Astana player Anthony Hickey.
Hezonja’s triple-double was the 9th in history.
Numbers
6 – so many wins UNICS got in a row. The Kazan team has the longest winning streak in the League at the moment.
Comments
Velimir Perasovic, UNICS Head Coach:
– First of all, I want to congratulate my players on the win. They played a very good game, from the first minutes they came out extremely concentrated. We have players in our squad who inspire others – Mario Hezonja, Andrey Vorontsevich, Tonye Jekiri played a good game. The other guys supported them and showed high-quality basketball, so the game became even easier than we expected.
Rostislav Vergun, Tsmoki-Minsk Head Coach:
– I’ve been dreaming for a long time that only Belarusians will play in our team. Finally, the dream came true. Under other circumstances, I would be happy, but now we have to be with such roster. I want to believe that this is not the best basketball that we are able to show. Today our game disappointed. The opponent surpassed us in absolutely all components. We were helpless against the aggressive defense, made a lot of turnovers. I hope that in the next games we will not just go out on the court, but try to achieve a win.
What’s next
UNICS: road game versus Nizhny Novgorod on March 14.
Tsmoki-Minsk: home game versus Astana on March 13.
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