UNICS defeated Astana on the road – 105:65 (26:19, 38:16, 20:19, 21:11).
Game progress
The guests took the lead at the start. UNICS’ made an 8-0 run, after which the hosts coaching staff was forced to take a timeout. The shakeup helped Astana. T.J. Starks took over leader role. The American guard scored 11 points and found Ruslan Aitkali open twice. After three-pointer, Astana deficit was reduced to just one shot – 19:21.
Still, the class and the roster depth allowed UNICS to regain control. At the start of the second quarter, the guests’ lead became double-digit for the first time – 35:24. Aggressive defense and excellent three-point shooting (8 of 13 – 61.5%) allowed the Kazan team to rapidly increase the lead. Velimir Perasovic team had a 29-point lead by halftime – 64:35.
The second half of the game was a blowout. The Kazan team controlled the game, scored 100+ points for the eighth time this season and secured a win.
X-factor
In this game, UNICS outperformed its opponent in almost all stats. The most obvious was rebounding. The guests grabbed almost twice as many rebounds as the opponent (42-22).
Facts
Jalen Reynolds became best scoring international player in the VTB League history. After today’s game, UNICS center has 2,302 points. He surpassed Nando De Colo (2,296 points).
Velimir Perasovic became the 4th most winning head coach of the team in VTB League history. UNICS has 122 wins with the Croatian specialist.
Leaders
Astana: T.J. Starks (23), Askar Maydekin (10).
UNICS: Sergey Toropov (20 + 8 rebounds), Marcos Knight (18), Jalen Reynolds (15 + 5 rebounds), Andrey Lopatin (15 + 5 assists), DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell (10).
What’s next
Astana: April 12 at home versus Zenit
UNICS: April 13 at home against CSKA.
