PARMA beat Astana at home – 100:91 (22:22, 20:18, 25:16, 19:30, 14:5).
Top scorers
PARMA: Adas Juskevicius (21 + 5 rebounds + 5 assists), Nikolai Zhmako (19), Mareks Mejeris (16 + 11 rebounds), Maxim Grigoryev (11).
Astana: Malcolm Hill (26 + 7 rebounds), Jeremiah Hill (21), James Florence (12), Stephen Holt (11), Dusan Ristic (9 + 11 rebounds).
Story
The start of the game was left to the hosts. Permians seized the initiative, and with it the leadership – 9:3. However, the guests quickly recovered. The start of their response push was laid by three pointers of Ristic and Zhigulin, and then the American guards of the guests “turned on”. As a result, in the end of the first quarter PARMA were already in the role of catching up. Artem Zabelin’s accurate free-throws set the equality on the start – 22:22.
In the second 10-minute teams switched roles. The guests owned the initiative, and their advantage in the score reached 7 points – 38:31. But Permians powerfully spent the ending of the quarter. A series of three long-range shots from Grigoryev and Zabelin helped the Permians to tie the game. And Williams’ accurate shot returned the lead to PARMA before the halftime break – 42:40.
On a positive wave, the Urals began the third quarter. The offensive leaders were Zhmako and Mejeris. His spectacular dunk over Ristic literally blew up the stands of Molot and was as another catalyst for Permians. The toke from teammates were taken over by Jushkevicius. Effective actions of the guard made the lead of Parma double-digit – 67:56.
The fourth quarter was in Astana’s attempts to make a comeback. Until the middle of the quarter Permians managed to keep a comfortable distance. But gradually, the individual skills of the American yellow and blue foreign players began to bring results. Red-hot Jeremiah Hill scored several key shots (13 points in a quarter), which provided the guests with an overtime – 86:86.
Key moment
Encouraged Jeremiah Hill was enough for a couple of points scored in an extra 5-minutes. But after that, Astana’s offense stopped. In the last three minutes of the game, guests scored just one point. But the Permians confidently acted in critical moments. Accurate tries by Mejeris, Zabelin and Zhmako provided the hosts a solid victory in extra time – 100: 91.
Hero
Nikolai Zhmako had the career-high game in VTB League. In this game, he set personal records in terms of scoring (19 points) and efficiency (21).
Stat
26 – this is exact number of points scored by PARMA players in this meeting after turnovers (Astana has 6 points). They made only two mistakes less than the opponent (12-14), but they used the enemy’s losses much more effectively.
Comments
PARMA head coach Kazys Maksvytis:
– It was a very fast-changing game. I am glad that the team showed spirit, especially in the third quarter and in overtime. It is a pity that the opponent managed to reduce the gap, which resulted in an overtime. Perhaps one of the reasons is that in the middle of the week, Lorenzo Williams and Maxim Grigoryev had microtraumas, and Robert Johnson did not take part in trainings. But I am pleased with the temper of my players and the fact that they managed to turn the tables and take the victory in overtime.
Astana head coach Emil Raikovikj:
– Congratulations to PARMA on the victory. It was a very interesting game for the fans. We allowed the opponent to make two large gaps, but after we managed to return to the game after being down by 18 points. In the last seconds of the game, we had possession and the opportunity to make the game-winner, which we planned but unfortunately failed to realize it. In overtime, we lost 9 points. I think this is too much.
Next
PARMA: January 18 at Nizhny Novgorod
Astana: January 26 at Zielona Gora
