Kazan will host WINLINE Game of the Week between UNICS and Lokomoitv Kuban on Saturday.
Place: Russia, Kazan, Baske Hall
Time: March 7, 2026, 18:00(Moscow time)
Broadcasts: Match! Igra, Start Triumph, League website
Head-to-head
Zenit and UNICS finished first and third in the regular season and did not face in the playoffs, but ended up close to each other, taking silver and bronze.
Their head-to-heads last season ended in a 2-2 tie. Each team won one home game and one road game. Zenit started and ended with wins. The second came during a record 25 consecutive wins.
During the regular season, both teams stood out for their defensive efficiency. UNICS allowed the opponent to score the less points (3191), while Zenit ranked third (3199).
The clubs have played 47 games in total, with Kazan team leading 26-21. In the first clash of the League season, which took place in early October, UNICS got win – 104:77. The second game at the CSC Arena in WINLINE Basket Cup on November 5 also ended Kazan team huge win – 91:72. On December 20, UNICS again defeated Zenit in the VTB League, this time at home – 88-75.
Power balance
UNICS (25-3) returns to the fight for the top spot in the standings with CSKA (26-2) at a difficult stage in the schedule. The strength accumulated during the break for national team games will definitely help Velimir Perasovic team, which will face Zenit, MBA-MAI, and its main rival in a span of 8 days. 2 games against the teams with the longest winning streaks in the League right now (18 and 6) could, if unsuccessful, throw UNICS off track in their desperate pursuit of the Moscow team.
Zenit struggled during the regular season and now is approaching this Game of the Week with a 6-game winning streak. Since Dejan Radonjic was appointed head coach, the St. Petersburg team has lost only in the in-season Cup, and the club’s last loss in the VTB League dates back to January. The break in the season should has helped the specialist, who had the opportunity to hold a kind of training camp right in the middle of the season, where he could calmly convey his ideas to his players. For the St. Petersburg team (20-9), the game is important in case of battle with Lokomotiv Kuban (19-11) for 3rd place. The St. Petersburg team is also determined to beat the Kazan club for the first time this season after the 3 losses mentioned above.
Quote
Zenit captain Trent Frazier on motivation ahead of the trip to Kazan:
– We’re in good spirits right now, we’re getting ready, we had a little break. It was a great reset. We want to go to Kazan and win; we have a score to settle with them. UNICS has been beating us all year, so now it’s our turn to win. We’ll fight.
Lineup changes
During the February break, Levi Randolph left Zenit. An important player for the team, he averaged 14.6 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 0.8 steals in 28 games, spending 26 minutes on the court.
The St. Petersburg team responded with the intriguing signing of 24-year-old American guard Johnny Juzang, who previously played in the NBA and appeared in 123 games over 4 seasons.
The guard spent the first half of the current season with the Minnesota Timberwolves on a two-way contract, without receiving significant playing time. In St. Petersburg, he will have more opportunities to demonstrate his talents.
Return
On March 1, Alexey Shved posted on social media that he and his family were unable to leave Dubai. Their flight was canceled due to the tense situation in the region. The Kazan team forward Andrey Lopatin was also delayed in the UAE for the same reason.
Before the Game of the Week, it became known that Shved and Lopatin had safely returned to Kazan along with their families.
Numbers
UNICS (88.0) and Zenit (89.8) are in the top three in average scoring, behind only CSKA (91.6).
UNICS (48.1) and Zenit (49.0) are in the top three in field goal percentage.
The Kazan team is in first place in assists, averaging 22.0 per game.
UNICS players lead in blocks, averaging 4.2 per game.
Zenit has less turnovers than any other team, averaging 11.1.
