Nizhny Novgorod, Krasnodar and Moscow will host 3 regular season games on Sunday.
Pari Nizhny Novgorod (Nizhny Novgorod) vs Zenit (St. Petersburg)
Time: 14:00 (Moscow time)
Place: Russia, Nizhny Novgorod, KRK Nagorny
Broadcast: Match! Igra, TV Start, League website
Pari Nizhny Novgorod: The return of Andrey Vorontsevich and Dmitrii Khvostov has transformed Nizhny game, with average scoring up 12 points and rebounds and steals up by 20%. Nizhny Novgorod has already managed to stop Loko, and in the game against CSKA led for most of the game and lost only in the end. Despite the 13th place in the standings, Zoran Lukic team is a dangerous opponent again. The Volga team defence has a good chance of stopping Zenit offense. Nizhny had 13 steals against the Army team, and Evgenii Baburin is in the Top 4 in steals (1.7 per game).
Zenit: The win over Runa was the 4th in 5 games in 2024. However, Zenit demonstrated stable basketball for the first time in the new year without missing opponent runs. The team shooters made 45% of the long-range shots, while Sergey Karasev showed perfect three-point shooting percentage (4 of 4). At the same time, Xavier Pascual team confirmed the League’s best defensive team status, allowing Runa to score only 62 points. The game with Nizhny will not be easy, but the team is capable of continuing the winning streak in defense.
Lokomotiv Kuban (Krasnodar) vs Samara (Samara)
Time: 15:00 (Moscow time)
Place: Russia, Krasnodar, Basket Hall
Broadcast: Start Triumph, League website
Lokomotiv Kuban: The Krasnodar team rehabilitate for the loss to Nizhny and convincingly defeat MINSK in the last game. Loko made 20 more rebounds than the opponent and regained their shooting percentage, making 42% of three-pointers. Loko is gaining momentum before the crucial months and is in the Top 3 in average scoring, rebounds and steals. The win over Samara in the first round was achieved with rebounds advantaged. The Krasnodar team has every chance to extend the winning streak. Samara loss will guarantee Enisey and PARMA a spot in the Top 6.
Samara: A week ago, Drazen Anzulovic team had equal chances for a direct entry into the playoffs with PARMA and Enisey, but loss to Astana put the Volga team behind for the Top-6 fight. Now the team needs only wins to keep the prospects of moving up to 6th place. It won’t be easy to win against Loko, as the Krasnodar team has a size advantage. However, Samara has successfully compensated for their lack of height with shooting efficiency several times this season. In their first-round games with UNICS, Samara couldn’t stop Jalen Reynolds and Ismael Bako, but scored 103 points and won. In addition, the Volga team is in the Top 4 in long-range shooting (36.6%). Therefore, Samara is quite capable of continuing their Playoff push against a formidable opponent.
Runa (Moscow) vs Astana (Astana)
Time: 16:00 (Moscow time)
Place: Moscow, DS Dynamo
Broadcast: TV Start, League website
Runa: The last month of the first stage went hard for Erturul Erdogan team – in 5 games only 1 win. As a result, the Vikings share 9th place with Astana, so the upcoming game will be important. In the first round, Runa beat Astana in overtime with Jeremiah Hill performance. The Moscow team show better basketball and rely primarily on playing in the paint. Runa is among the Top 3 in two-point shooting, which could help the team succeed in their next game and avoid dropping to 10th place before the second round.
Astana: After a 5-game losing streak, Oleg Kiselev team improved prospects with wins over MBA and Samara. Royce Hamm and Markell Johnson are in good shape, averaging 38 points combined in wins. The Kazakh team fast-paced offence can work well against Runa: the fastbreaks led by Johnson will be extremely difficult for the Moscow team to stop. Therefore, Astana has a good chance to take revenge for the first-round loss to the Vikings and move up to 9th place in the standings.
