Samara defeated Avtodor at home – 86:71 (18:27, 26:16, 20:16, 22:12).
Game progress
Already in the opening quarter, the Saratov team tried to take the initiative. Malik Newman and Sindarius Thornwell allowed the guests to take a 15-point lead midway through the first quarter – 20:5. Samara quickly caught up, and even took the lead by the halftime – 35:33.
In the third quarter, the hosts began to slowly pull away. After Hayden Dalton long-range shot, Samara lead reached 8 points – 64:56.
Key moment
During the final quarter, the Saratov team tried to catch up. But Samara still looked better. Nikola Rebic and Rade Zagorac helped the hosts to get a 12-point lead – 77:65. Samara didn’t let the advantage slip away and got the win.
X-factor
Rade Zagorac had his best game of the season against his former team. The forward became the best scoring player of the winning team with 20 points and 8 rebounds.
Fact
Today’s win secured Samara’s second place in Group B. Thus, in the first play-in game in Yekaterinburg, the Volga team will compete with Uralmash for 7th place in the regular season.
Two Samara players reached significant statistical peaks in this meeting. Nikola Rebic broke the 300 assists mark in the VTB League, and Justin Roberson became the 82nd player in the history of the tournament to score more than 1,000 points.
Leaders
Samara: Rade Zagorac (20 + 8 rebounds), Justin Roberson (18), Nikola Rebic (13 + 5 rebounds + 6 assists), James Thompson (10 + 7 rebounds).
Avtodor: Sindarius Thornwell (18), Malik Newman (16), Rayshawn Hammonds (12), Aleksandr Petenev (10).
What’s next
Samara (21-17): April 10 on the road against Pari Nizhny Novgorod
Avtodor (18-20): April 10 at home versus Uralmash.
