Six regular season games are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
Saturday, March 3
Time: 4:00 PM (5:00 MSK)
Place: Arena Riga, Riga, Latvia
TV: VTB-League.com
VEF: These opponents were at opposite ends of the standings for much of the season, but VEF’s recent success makes the match-up more difficult to assess. The Latvians are on the rise, as evidenced by victories over Minsk and Krasnoyarsk, and a shocking upset of Khimki on the road. VEF also nearly took down Zenit in their first meeting, losing on a game-winner from Demonte Harper and Evgeny Valiev’s block at the buzzer.
Zenit: Back-to-back losses have damaged Zenit’s hopes of a 1st-place finish, while Khimki and Avtodor lurk a few games back in the standings. Since the New Year, Zenit has struggled to play at a high level (due to an endless string of injuries), and the All-Star break was a much needed chance to rest and recover. There’s a good chance center Andrei Desyatnikov, who recently returned from loan, will be on the roster for Saturday’s game vs. VEF.
UNICS Russia – Lokomotiv-Kuban Russia
Time: 5:00 PM (5:00 MSK)
Place: Basket Hall, Kazan, Russia
TV: Match! Nash Sport, VTB-League.com
UNICS: Kazan entered the All-Star and international break in 1st place with only one loss. UNICS is virtually unbeatable at home, but Loko will present a huge challenge on Saturday. The game is loaded with All-Star match-ups, from Lasme vs. Elegar to Colom vs. Kulagin. Neither team can afford a defeat with CSKA looking to reclaim supremacy in the standings.
Lokomotiv-Kuban: Loko was in 1st place only a few weeks ago, but has since dropped to 3rd after back-to-back three-point losses to Avtodor and CSKA. Kuban hopes to get revenge for the loss to UNICS in October, when the Railwaymen only scored four points in the 4th quarter. Even though Loko is known mostly for defense, the club ranks 2nd in scoring (85.5 points per game), only 0.1 ppg more than UNICS.
Sunday, March 4
Astana Kazakhstan – Tsmoki-Minsk Belarus
Time: 6:00 PM (3:00 MSK)
Place: SC Velotrek, Astana, Kazakhstan
TV: VTB-League.com
Astana: Not only did Astana win its final game before the All-Star break, it did so in sensational fashion, defeating Zenit by 23 points. That was the team’s second win under young head coach Mikhail Karpenko. The victory helped Astana reinsert itself into the playoff picture with seven teams battling for the final two spots. Tsmoki is one of those seven teams, making this a huge game for both clubs.
Tsmoki-Minsk: Tsmoki’s Belarusian contingent secured a superb win over reigning European champs Slovenia in World Cup qualifying, led by Maxim Salash, Devon Saddler, Aliaksandr Kudrautsau and head coach Alexander Krutikov. Nonetheless, Astana will be favored at home considering Tsmoki has not won in the League since mid-December.
Time: 4:00 PM (3:00 MSK)
Place: Kristall Sports Palace, Saratov, Russia
TV: VTB-League.com
Avtodor: Evgeny Kisurin noted in a recent interview that Avtodor has had incredible success under Evgeny Pashutin. The stats speak for themselves: 6 wins in nine games and 5th place in the standings. Until Pashutin arrived in Saratov, no one questioned the supremacy of the League’s Big Five, but that has changed thanks to Avtodor’s surge. But there’s no time to relax. Avtodor hosts 2nd-place CSKA this weekend and will be looking for revenge for the blowout loss in Moscow earlier this season.
CSKA: The Army Men crushed Maccabi in the EuroLeague on Thursday, initially using their size and strength to break down the Israeli club, before upping the tempo with a small-ball lineup to put the game away. CSKA has as much depth and offensive weapons as any team in Europe, which means Avtodor will need to be completely locked in to prevent the visitors from dictating the pace of the game. Of course, even when on the defensive, CSKA is still incredibly difficult to beat.
Nizhny Novgorod Russia – Khimki Russia
Time: 3:00 PM (3:00 MSK)
Place: Sports Palace, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
TV: Match! Nash Sport, VTB-League.com
Nizhny Novgorod: The Volga club stormed into the All-Star break behind Stevan Jelovac’s record-breaking 49-point outing in a win vs. Kalev. The victory lifted Nizhny Novgorod into 7th place. The first meeting of the season between Khimki and Nizhny Novgorod featured a wild shootout between Jelovac and Shved (32 and 34 points, respectively). Moscow Region won the game in overtime, and Nizhny will be looking for revenge at home, hoping to take advantage of short rest for the visitors after a EuroLeague away game in Spain.
Khimki: Moscow Region’s string of bad luck continues as the club has dropped to 6th in the standings. Khimki also lost in the EuroLeague on Thursday, falling to Baskonia in Spain, despite 44 combined points from Alexey Shved and Anthony Gill. Thomas Robinson, who returned at the end of February, will have a big impact on the game vs. Nizhny Novgorod. If he can dominate the paint, Khimki’s chances are good for a win on the road.
Time: 5:30 PM (3:30 MSK)
Place: Molot Sports Palace, Perm, Russia
TV: VTB-League.com
PARMA: Perm has not played in the VTB United League since January 28. The month-long pause has the fans in Perm hungry for basketball and the team should be raring to go in this showdown vs. a fellow playoff hopeful. PARMA is in 8th place, but could easily move up or down depending on the weekend’s results. The team has had plenty of time to practice in February as Ivan Ukhov, Andrejs Grazulis and Codi Miller-McIntyre were the only players to feature in national team competition.
Kalev: After a strong start under new head coach Donaldas Kairys, Kalev has lost three of five. The only blowout loss came against Loko, but close losses don’t count in the standings. Kalev needs to start winning soon to have a shot at the postseason. These two opponents are very evenly matched, boasting similar stats in almost every category except one: three-point shooting. Kalev is ranked 2nd in the League, knocking down 39.3% of its long-range attempts.
