Four VTB United League games are scheduled for October 16-18. Check out each match-up in our mini-preview.
Sunday, October 16
Tsmoki-Minsk Belarus – Avtodor Russia
Time: 3:00 PM (3:00 MSK)
Place: Falcon Club, Minsk, Belarus
Tsmoki-Minsk: Minsk signed Belarusian national team forward Mikita Meshcharakou on Tuesday. Meshcharakou played for Minsk from 2013-15, before signing with Sweden’s Lulea, where he averaged 5.5 points and 3.6 rebounds per game last season.
Tsmoki defeated Tsmoki-Minsk II on Wednesday in the first round of the Belarusian Cup, 110-71. Aliaksandr Semianiuk scored a game-high 19 points in the rout.
After Sunday’s game vs. Avtodor, Minsk debuts at home vs. Siauliai in the FIBA Europe Cup on Wednesday.
File this under bizarre stat: Tsmoki has given up exactly 71 points in its last three games (71-67 loss to Ironi Nahariya, 71-58 loss to Zenit, and 110-71 win over Tsmoki-Minsk II). The Belarusians would be very pleased to keep high-flying Avtodor 71 points or less, given Saratov scored 95 in a win over Nizhny Novgorod.
Avtodor: The club suspended its contract with 22-year-old forward Andrei Piterov due to back trouble. He’ll be welcomed back to the team if he can make a successful recovery. Piterov, a product of Avtodor’s youth academy, played well in the preseason, including 13 points and seven rebounds against Enisey.
Sergei Mokin guided Avtodor to a 95-92 win at home over Nizhny Novgorod on Saturday in his first game as head coach. The team is now 1-1 and seeking its first road win.
Saratov debuts in the FIBA Basketball Champions League on Wednesday, traveling to Ukraine to face Khimik.
Lokomotiv-Kuban Krasnodar – Enisey Krasnoyarsk
Time: 4:00 PM (4:00 MSK)
Place: Basket Hall, Krasnodar, Russia
Lokomotiv-Kuban: Fotios Katsikaris makes his VTB United League debut on Sunday, as Krasnodar opens up against Krasnoyarsk. The Greek coach already picked up his first win on Wednesday with a 72-64 victory vs. Olimpija in the Eurocup.
Playing without Andrei Zubkov and Matt Janning, Loko was led by Kenny Gabriel’s 17 points and exhibited stellar defense, holding the Slovenians to 35.6% field-goal shooting.
Evgeny Baburin’s wife gave birth to a boy, Dima, on October 5. The ex-Nizhny Novgorod player recently described his new team: “We’ve got a good, competitive team with experience. Half are Russian, half are foreign: everyone understands each other perfectly. We’re going to execute our plays…it’s up to the coach to decide who plays and with which scheme.”
Enisey: It’s been almost three years since Enisey last defeated Lokomotiv (January 6, 2014, 109-86). Only one player remains from that team, forward Alexander Pavlov.
Krasnoyarsk has a brutal 3-game stretch to open the season, hosting CSKA, before traveling to Kazan and Krasnodar. The Siberians put up a fight against the reigning champs, losing by 13. Sunday’s game against UNICS wasn’t as close, as Kazan cruised to a 100-56 win.
Speaking of Pavlov, he represented Russia at the 3×3 world championships in China this week. Unfortunately, the country finished 3rd in its group, narrowly missing out on a spot in the quarterfinals.
Monday, October 17
UNICS Kazan – Parma Perm
Time: 7:30 PM (7:30 MSK)
Place: Basket Hall, Kazan, Russia
UNICS: Years ago, Kazan and Perm had one of the hottest rivalries in Russian basketball. Though Ural-Great folded, UNICS is still one of Russia’s top teams and has been on fire to start the 2016-17 campaign, winning its first three games by an average of 28 points.
UNICS also debuted in the Euroleague on Friday, hosting Barcelona. Superb defensively, Evgeny Pashutin’s club led by as many as 12 in the 4th quarter, but couldn’t quite seal the deal, losing 69-63.
Keith Langford continues to lead the team in scoring, averaging 16.3 per game. Coty Clarke has also been effective, nearly averaging a double-double: 13.3 points and 8.0 rebounds.
Parma: Parma came up short in its VTB United League debut, falling 86-72 to Kalev.
Head coach Viacheslav Shushakov said after the game that his team needs to get used to playing against better competition.
They get another chance on Monday vs. UNICS, which will only have two days between Friday’s showdown with Barcelona and Perm.
Parma was led by forward Ivan Nelyubov (16 points + 8 rebounds) and Danilo Andjusic (14 points + 7 assists) in the loss to Kalev. The team also used a fairly big rotation, with nine players getting 12+ minutes on the court.
Tuesday, October 18
Zenit (Russia) – Kalev (Estonia)
Time: 8:00 PM (8:00 MSK)
Place: SC Yubileyniy, St. Petersburg, Russia
Zenit: Zenit opened the season with wins over Tsmoki-Minsk in the VTB United League and Bayern Munich in the Eurocup.
Injuries are an issue, however. Ryan Toolson and Evgeny Valiev are both expected to miss Tuesday’s game against Kalev, leaving Zenit with only 8-9 men in the rotation.
Head coach Vasily Karasev recently shared his thoughts on his son, Sergey Karasev, who’s averaging 17 points per game: “He’s helping out and making the team better… Right now, he’s struggling with game time and confidence. Janis Timma, for example, has had plenty of that on our team and is taking the next step this season. Those things are very important. Knowing Sergey, I know how important it is for him, too.”
Kalev: A win over Parma helped the Estonians to a 1-0 start in the League. Guard Demonte Harper was outstanding, posting 26 points, five rebounds, and seven assists in the victory.
Against Zenit, Kalev will try to take advantage of its athleticism and depth to punish the short-handed Russians.
The reigning Estonian League champs, Kalev is 0-2 to start the season. The team suffered a devastating setback on Wednesday, surrendering a 19-point halftime lead in a 77-76 loss to Tartu.
