Everything is decided. But we will fight

We can't move from the second place

No, there is still a theoretical chance. The team can still become the champion of the regular season. However, such an outcome is at the level of a super sensation. To achieve this, it is not enough to win a couple of the remaining games, against Nizhny Novgorod and Kazan. Zenit needs to lose twice - and the St.Petersburg team only needs to host Parma at home and play Astana away. The probability of two defeats is close to zero.

The Muscovites will also not be able to let UNICS go up in the standings. The teams are separated by two victories, and even in the worst outcome for CSKA at the end of the championship, second place is already guaranteed - due to the head-to-head matchup won.

So it remains to solve our own problems - to try something new for the playoffs, to hone the details - and to fight for the prestige of the team that strives to win every game. Almost everyone in the team is healthy now: Yuri Umrikhin returned to trainings after an ankle injury, and Casper Ware, who bruised his thigh in Krasnoyarsk, was held out by the coaches on Tuesday practice.

"It's too early to think about the playoffs, we are focused on the upcoming games," assured CSKA head coach Andreas Pistiolis. “The season is not over, and our attitude is to prepare for each opponent and maintain a good rhythm. We have played many games with each other, we know each other well. If we are not paying due attention to Nizhny, we may have trouble. They have proven that they can beat us, almost all the top teams have had problems against this opponent, they have a special mentality in such games."

For the right to play CSKA

For the Nizhny Novgorod team, in terms of the outcome, the regular season ending is much more interesting. Theoretically, they can even break into the top six, although this is unlikely given the schedule and history of meetings with Avtodor, which currently occupies this position. This means that they will have to fight with Parma for 7-8 places, important for the home court advantage in the first play-in game. And here, everything will quite possibly be decided in a face-to-face meeting in the final round. Sergei Kozin's team is 3-0 against the Perm team, so their chances are good. And these very chances lead to the playoffs meeting against... CSKA.

True, the black and whites are not in a great mood right now. The team failed to shine at the home Final Four of the Russian Cup, was disappointed in its newcomer Matic Rebec (6.2 points, 19.6% three-pointers, 3.1 assists in 11 games), and on Sunday they lost to the battered Samara, albeit without the injured Dmitry Khvostov and Alexander Khomenko. The statistical leader of Pari NN right now is one of the three remaining foreigners on the roster, Nemanja Djurisic (11.6 points, 4.7 rebounds). An important role in the rotation is played by CSKA alumnus Khomenko (9.1 points, 3.5 assists, 43.4% three-pointers) and Igor Volkhin, who transferred from Zenit during the season (8.8 points, 4.8 rebounds).

Past matchups

Win-loss record: 47-5

2024-25 VTB League regular season games:

05-Oct-2024. Pari NN – CSKA: 77-75 (-2)
02-Nov-2024. CSKA – Pari NN: 91-65 (+26)
09-Feb-2025. Pari NN – CSKA: 86-94 (+8)

Brief dossier

BC Pari Nizhny Novgorod

Founded: 2000
Colors: white, black
Homecourt: Labor Unions Palace of Sports (5,000)
President: Sergey Panov
Head coach: Sergei Kozin
Website: www.nn-basket.ru
Accomplishments: Russian Cup winner (2023), VTB United League runner-ups (2014), Russian Championship runner-up (2014), Superleague B champion (2010), Russian Cup finalists (2011)