Tsmoki-Minsk Belarus defeated Parma Russia at home, 66-65 (22-11, 19-17, 15-16, 10-21).
Top Scorers
Tsmoki-Minsk: Aliaksandr Kudrautsau (12), Mikita Meshcharakou (11), Devon Saddler (11), Filip Adamovic (9 + 6 ast)
Parma: Codi Miller-McIntyre (19 + 5 reb + 5 ast), Frank Gaines (12), Andrejs Grazulis (10 + 7 reb)
Story
Sporting identical 1-2 records, Minsk and Perm were both looking to notch back-to-back wins and move up in the standings.
The home team dominated the opening 20 minutes. Trailing 10-8 midway through the 1st quarter, Tsmoki went on a 16-1 run, holding Parma without a field goal for six and a half minutes.
Minsk led by as much as 16 in the 2nd quarter, ending the half on top by 13, 41-28.
Entering the 4th quarter, Parma was staring at a 12-point deficit.
But a 10-0 run to open the period, capped by a pair of Alexey Vzdykhalkin triples, trimmed the deficit to two. After Filip Adamovic sank a free throw, Codi Miller-McIntyre made it a one-point game, 57-56, with a little under seven minutes remaining.
The final minutes featured six lead changes as the two teams matched basket for basket in the Falcon Club.
The turning point came with 52 seconds left to play. Trailing by a point, Parma’s Frank Gaines was stripped on a layup attempt – at the other end, Filip Adamovic took the ball to the hole to give Tsmoki a three-point edge.
Despite several opportunities, Parma could not get a clean look in the final 30 seconds, dropping a 66-65 thriller.
Minsk improves to 2-2, scoring back-to-back wins at home. Parma drops to 1-3.
Highlights
. @TsmokiMinsk vs. @parmabasketone minute highlights 📹 pic.twitter.com/Qewcew5Bav
— VTB United League (@VTBUL) October 29, 2017
Stat
19 – Parma shot only 5-24 from beyond the arc, missing 19 attempts.
Quotes
Tsmoki-Minsk head coach Alexander KRUTIKOV:
– Today’s game consisted of two different parts. In the first half, we played good defense and moved the ball on offense. We had a lot of open looks. After halftime, Parma got back into the game. They were terrific on defense and took advantage of our weaknesses. But I’m happy we won this difficult game. Congratulations to everyone on the win.
Parma head coach Nikolajs MAZURS:
– I think our attitude in the 1st quarter decided the outcome of the game. We didn’t grab our rebounds and played very sluggish. We weren’t as aggressive. I’m happy we managed to get back into the game after halftime. At the end, it was a 50-50 game. Either team could have won. But Adamovic hit his shot and we didn’t.
Up Next
Tsmoki-Minsk: November 5 home vs. UNICS
Parma: November 5 home vs. Astana
Snapshot
