Pari Nizhny Novgorod beat Lokomotiv Kuban at home – 93:79 (18:27, 24:11, 29:20, 22:21).
The best scorers
Pari Nizhny Novgorod: Jermaine Love (28), Dragan Apic (20), Evgenii Baburin (18 + 5 steals).
Lokomotiv Kuban: Jaylen Barford (23 + 6 rebounds), Darral Willis (16 + 9 rebounds), Zakhar Vedishchev (12 + 5 rebounds), Andrey Martiuk (8 + 5 rebounds).
Game process
Pari Nizhny Novgorod had 3 wins and 2 losses before the game – all the wins were on the road. Lokomotiv Kuban had 2-3 after the loss to UNICS. The home court factor with the opposite effect showed already in the first quarter, NN got only 1 of 8 three-pointers. Loko used their chances better and after 10 minutes had a 9-point lead – 27:18.
In the pause Zoran Lukic changed the accents, concentrating on the game in the paint and also cheered up the team, forcing them to play more aggressive in defense. Led by Dragan Apic and Evgenii Baburin, Pari NN started the second quarter with a 12-2 run, which allowed them to lead the score. The hosts let the opponents make 5 turnovers and did not loose the ball and continued to score in the paint. Nizhny Novgorod led after 13-point comeback 42:38.
For most of the third quarter, there game was equal but Jermaine Love was the best in the end of it. The guard scored 7 points in a row at the end of the quarter, including three-point buzzer beater – a 14-2 run and 71:58 before the fourth quarter. Threes by Andrey Martiuk, Alexandr Shcherbenev and Darral Willis in the first minutes of the fourth quarter brought Lokomotiv back into the game – 69:75.
The key moment
Pari Nizhny Novgorod made a 9:0 run with Apic and Baburin help. Aleksander Sekulic had to take a time-out, but it did not help Loko to come back to the game. NN controlled the game till the end and won. This is the first home win.
Hero
Evgenii Baburin. Pari NN captain motivated teammates and was effective both in offense and defense: 18 points (4 of 9 from the game, 7 of 7 from the line), 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 5 steals in 31 minutes.
Numbers
25 turnovers were made by Lokomotiv Kuban (Nizhny got 7). The Krasnodar team is still searching their game style.
What’s next
Pari Nizhny Novgorod: home game versus MBA on October 31.
Lokomotiv Kuban: home game against Astana on October 31.
