Eight regular season games will be played on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Sunday, February 11
Astana Kazakhstan – Zenit Russia
Time: 3:00 PM (12:00 MSK)
Place: SC Velotrek, Astana, Kazakhstan
TV: VTB-League.com
Astana: The Kazakh club is one of several contenders for the final two playoff spots, entering the game with three wins, trailing the League’s 7th-place team by only a game. Astana has also been extremely competitive vs. some of the tourney’s top teams, losing by only five points to UNICS, one point to Khimki, and taking Avtodor to double overtime.
Zenit: St. Petersburg has played down to the level of competition this season, but with Drew Gordon returning to the lineup in the EuroCup win over Torino earlier this week, Vasily Karasev will have more options in the frontcourt. Astana big man Ike Udanoh is a force and Gordon’s presence will be a boost to the visiting club. St. Petersburg should also be in a good mood after advancing to the EuroCup quarterfinals with the win vs. Torino.
Tsmoki-Minsk Belarus – CSKA Russia
Time: 5:00 PM (5:00 MSK)
Place: Falcon Club, Minsk, Belarus
TV: VTB-League.com
Tsmoki-Minsk: The Belarusian Dragons have lost 15 in a row vs. CSKA. Big underdogs vs. the Army Men, even at home, Tsmoki boasts a respectable defense, but scores more than 20 fewer points per game than CSKA (70.6 vs. 91.2).
CSKA: The Army Men won’t need any extra motivation. Stuck in 3rd place entering the weekend, CSKA can pass Lokomotiv-Kuban in the standings with a win, setting up a dramatic showdown on Wednesday in Krasnodar. This is a must-win for Dimitris Itoudis and co. in Minsk.
Monday, February 12
Khimki Russia – VEF Latvia
Time: 7:30 PM (7:30 MSK)
Place: BCMO, Khimki, Russia
TV: Match! Nash Sport, VTB-League.com
Khimki: On February 9, Khimki defeated Zalgiris on the road in the EuroLeague. On February 12, the Yellow-Blues face another Baltic club, VEF Riga, in VTB United League competition. Khimki has no margin for error. Tied for 5th place with Avtodor with a 7-6 record, Moscow Region needs to finish the season on a roll for any shot at a top-four finish.
The biggest issue for Georgios Bartzokas this season has been consistency with losses frequently coming after big wins. One positive takeaway from the Zalgiris win was the team’s improved balance. Though Shved scored 20 points, Tyler Honeycutt was the one to knock down a clutch 3 in the final minutes.
VEF: Riga stunned Khimki in October 2016, when Rimas Kurtinaitis was still the head coach in Moscow Region. That was VEF’s first and only victory in 18 meetings vs. Khimki. On Monday, Janis Gailitis will try to make it two wins in 19 tries. After back-to-back victories, Riga has rejoined the postseason chase and escaped last place in the standings. In the game vs. Enisey, VEF won thanks to its defense. That will be the key once again in Moscow Region.
Kalev Estonia – UNICS Russia
Time: 7:00 PM (8:00 MSK)
Place: Saku Suurhall, Tallinn, Estonia
TV: VTB-League.com
Kalev: Tallinn is playing very well under new coach Donaldas Kairys, winning three of its last five games, including a victory over Khimki. Kalev will try to score another upset on Monday. The club’s high-powered offense, led by the explosive Isaiah Briscoe, is wreaking havoc on League defenses. The Estonians boast the top-scoring unit in the bottom half of the League standings, except for Nizhny Novgorod, on pace for a club-record 82.7 points per game.
UNICS: Like the rest of the Russian clubs, UNICS guaranteed a spot in the EuroCup quarterfinals by defeating Limoges by 10 points. Kazan’s defense is uniquely suited to neutralize up-tempo, perimeter-oriented teams like Limoges and Kalev, allowing only 73.7 points per game in the United League. Kalev’s defense could also be a factor: UNICS is the only team to score more than 100 points on the Estonians this season.
Wednesday, February 14
Enisey Russia – Avtodor Russia
Time: 7:30 PM (3:30 MSK)
Place: Arena.Sever, Krasnoyarsk, Russia
TV: VTB-League.com
Enisey: Krasnoyarsk is in last place in the League following a setback at home vs. VEF. At the same time, only one game separates 7th and 13th place in the standings. A win over Avtodor would put the Siberians back on track, and turn the page from a disastrous 1-6 stretch.
Finding the right balance between offense and defense has been the biggest struggle for Oleg Okulov’s club. Enisey lost a shootout vs. Kalev (91-88), then scored only 49 points in a defeat to Lokomotiv-Kuban.
Avtodor: Evgeny Pashutin’s arrival helped Avtodor turn the season around, as evidenced by last Saturday’s win in Krasnodar. Saratov picked apart Loki’s vaunted defense with the help of point guard Justin Robinson, and now takes on a club that allows 86.5 points per game. Though president Vladimir Rodionov has said 6th place is the team’s ceiling, Pashutin would love to push Khimki for 5th place.
Lokomotiv-Kuban Russia – CSKA Russia
Time: 8:00 PM (8:00 MSK)
Place: Basket Hall, Krasnodar, Russia
TV: Match! Nash Sport
Lokomotiv-Kuban: It doesn’t get much bigger than this. 2nd-place Loko is the only team giving up fewer than 70 points per game, while 3rd-place CSKA is the only team scoring more than 90 per game. Each of the two team’s leading scorers are averaging 17 per game, Loko’s Dmitry Kulagin and CSKA’S Nando De Colo. In the first meeting between these teams, Kulagin scored 17, enjoying a little payback for all the time spent on CSKA’S bench the previous two seasons.
CSKA: The Red-Blues can pass Loko in the standings on Sunday with a win. But it won’t matter much if they can’t also win on Wednesday. On top of the two defeats in the United League, CSKA also played poorly vs. Valencia in the EuroLeague. There are some valid reasons for the slump: CSKA was playing without any centers vs. Valencia. Whether or not the Army Men can overcome the same issue against Loko’s deep frontcourt is the big question.
Thursday, February 15
Zenit Russia – Khimki Russia
Time: 8:00 PM (8:00 MSK)
Place: Yubileyny Sports Palace, St. Petersburg
TV: VTB-League.com, Match! Nash Sport
Zenit: Thursday features another top-five showdown between Zenit and Khimki. Zenit has shown an impressive ability to come back in recent games, though the slow starts are a concern. That’s what happened vs. Nizhny Novgorod and Torino.
After last year’s epic semifinal series, these two teams are bitter rivals and two of the most evenly matched clubs in the League, splitting the all-time series 6-6.
Khimki: Beating Zenit may be Khimki’s only chance to make a serious run at a top-four finish and home-court advantage in the postseason.
This is one of the biggest matchups in the League, highlighted by the duel between Russian superstars Sergey Karasev and Alexey Shved. The rivalry disappointed in the first meeting between these teams this season: Shved scored 34, but Zenit limited Khimki to 66 points in an impressive team win. With Drew Gordon back in the lineup for Zenit, Moscow Region could be in even more trouble on Thursday.
Kalev Estonia – Nizhny Novgorod Russia
Time: 7:00 PM (8:00 MSK)
Place: Kalevi Spordihall, Tallinn, Estonia
TV: VTB-League.com
Kalev: This is the final game before the All-Star Game and these two teams may provide a tasty preview of the offense on tap in St. Petersburg. Kalev and Nizhny love to score the ball, ranking in the top-eight in the League in offense, while giving up 87.3 (Nizhny) and 90.5 (Kalev) points per game.
Nizhny Novgorod: Nizhny’s defense was the reason for the loss to Zenit last week. Once Stefan Jelovac cooled off on offense, St. Petersburg was able to shift the momentum and earn a comeback win. Nizhny should have an easier time scoring the ball vs. Kalev: The Estonians commit 14.5 turnovers per game and Zoran Lukic’s club knows how to score in transition.
