Runa beat Pari Nizhny Novgorod at home – 83:76 (14:24, 27:18, 23:20, 19:14).
Game progress
The teams started the game with missed shots and turnovers. Then Nizhny Novgorod made a 16:7 run with Andrey Vorontsevich actions. Juwan Morgan was the key performer in the hosts offense. Nizhny focused on a teamplay, which led to a 13-point lead by the middle of the second quarter. Alex Tyus and Cameron Young were able to help Runa offense. The American duo started a 14:2 run and cut the score to the minimum at the end of the first half – 41:42.
Key moment
Throughout the third quarter, neither team managed to break away by more than 5 points. Erturul Erdogan team had a lead beofre the fourth quarter – 64:62. Jeremiah Hill was silent for the whole game, but then showed up in the last quarter. The guard scored 9 points in a row and brought Runa lead to 5 points – 77:72. Nizhny Novgorod had problems – 4 turnovers and Mikhail Belenitskii 5th foul made it difficult to chase the opponent.
But the guests still had a chance to tie the score. However, Evgenii Bburin missed three-pointer, and tneh commited a foul. The Moscow team made 4 of 4 free throws in the key moment of the game. The advantage reached 7 points and the Vikings took the win.
X-factor
Defense played an important role in this game. The hosts made 8 steals (compared to only Nizhny’s 3) and forced the opponent to make 22 turnovers. It’s noteworthy that 5 were in the last quarter, in which Runa managed to organize the decisive run.
Fact
Zoran Lukic today had his 263 game as head coach of Pari Nizhny Novgorod. The Serbian specialist repeated Dimitris Itoudis’ record for games in the VTB League team. The former Moscow team coach led CSKA from 2014 to 2022, while Lukic has his post since 2008 (with 3 seasons break from 2014 to 2015).
Runa won at home for the first time in 2 months. The last winning game took place on January 28. Then Vikings defeated Astana – 80:67.
Leaders
Runa: Juwan Morgan (16 + 6 rebounds + 6 steals), Alex Tyus (16 + 5 rebounds), Nikola Ivanovic (14), Jeremiah Hill (13 + 7 rebounds).
Pari Nizhny Novgorod: Aleksandr Chadov (18 + 7 rebounds), Uladzislau Blizniuk (12), Andrey Vorontsevich (10 + 5 rebounds), Kendall Smith (10).
What’s next
Runa (14-21): April 1 at home against Samara
Pari Nizhny Novgorod (12-23): March 31 on the road versus MBA.
