Pari Nizhny Novgorod beat Avtodor at home – 74:69 (26:22, 19:13, 12:14, 17:20).
The best scorers
Pari Nizhny Novgorod: Evgenii Baburin (17 + 5 assists + 5 steals), Ivan Strebkov (17), Jermaine Love (15), Dragan Apic (10 + 6 rebounds), Nikola Rebic (9 + 5 assists).
Avtodor: Malik Newman (15 + 6 assists), Christian Jones (11), Scott Machado (11), Evgeniy Minchenko (11), Danilo Nikolic (9 + 6 rebounds), Rade Zagorac (8 + 8 rebounds).
Game progress
Pari Nizhny Novgorod had the 6th place in the stanidngs with 7 wins and 7 losses. Avtodor (5-9) was 9th, but after Darko Russo appointment rushes to the playoff zone. At the same time, Brandon Garrett, Ryan Boatwright, Aleksandr Petenev and Evgeniy Kolesnikov absence due to injuries became a serious problem for the Saratov team in the derby.
Nizhny Novgorod attempted to take the lead in the first quarter, when Ivan Strebkov twice and then Evgenii Baburin and Jermaine Love scored three-pointers – 20:10. Avtodor stood good. Rookie Scott Machado with Christian Jones helped the guests to reduce the difference to 4 points at the end of the quarter.
Strebkov – Baburin duo focred to make NN lead in the second quarter. Three-point series by Maksim Lichutin allowed Zoran Lukic team to increase the lead – 42:34. Avtodor stood up here, returning to the game. In the remaining time, the Saratov team tightly defended the perimeter and periodically found opportunities to score in the paint. With an 11:3 run, Avtodor kept the chances by the halftime – 35:45.
The third quarter did not make significant changes in the game. The opponents scored 26 points before the final quarter.
Nizhny tried to dry up the game and keep a comfortable lead, but Malik Newman three-pointer and Machado free-throws still allowed the Saratov team to win the game – 65:69 2 and 2.5 minutes before the end.
The key moment
Lukic took a timeout, after which Nizhny had a good possession – Baburin scored another three-pointer after Nikola Rebic assist. This shot became decisive. Avtodor responded a little later with Danilo Nikolic free-throws. Then Dragan Apic and Christian Jones scored, but the Nizhny Novgorod team controlled the game and got the win.
Pari Nizhny Novgorod is chasing Lokomotiv-Kuban in the standings now, Avtodor has not yet managed to take another step towards getting into the Top 8.
Hero
Evgenii Baburin. Nizhny Novgorod captain shared became the best scoring player with Ivan Strebkov, while he was good not only in offense – 17 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals with 6 out of 9 from the game. Baburin also scored the key three-pointer in the end.
Numbers
23 assists by Pari Nizhny Novgorod with 27 made shots from the game (11 assists from Avtodor).
What’s next
Pari Nizhny Novgorod: home game against Enisey on December 11.
Avtodor: road game versus Astana on December 13.
