Minus 16? No problem!
Our team had a poor first quarter, but performed brilliantly in the next three, leaving Zenit no chance in a packed Megasport...
CSKA – Zenit Saint Petersburg: 93-88 (+5)
CSKA: Ruzhentsev (2), Trimble (18), Ukhov (2 as), Astapkovich (5 + 5 as), Jean-Charles (13 + 7 rb) – start; Cleveland (14 + 4 rb), Ware (25 + 2 as), Jekiri (2), Karpenko (DNP), Chadov (5 + 3 rb + 2 st), Antonov (0), Kurbanov (9 + 5 rb)…
Zenit: Frazier (9 + 3 rb + 5 as + 4 to + 5 pf), Martyuk (8 + 4 rb + 3 as), Zhbanov (21 + 6 rb + 2 st + 4 pf), Uzinskiy (5), Randolph (11 + 4 rb + 3 as) – start; Shcherbenev (5), Zemskiy (DNP), Dimitrijevic (11 + 7 as + 3 to + 4 pf), Krivykh (DNP), Vorontsevich (6 + 2 as), Yemchenko (0), Samanic (12 + 6 rb + 3 to)…
Andreas Pistiolis, CSKA head coach:
I want to thank the fans for their incredible support. We felt their energy and, I think, rewarded them with a real show. We started the game poorly today, but that didn't surprise me because the team hasn't played well in practice this week. It's important to me that we defeated an opponent who played good basketball early in the game. We did it, scoring 93 points on 21% of our three-pointers, of which we made only six, while our opponent made 50%. Everyone who took the court today showed motivation and a desire to win.
Alexander Chadov, CSKA forward:
Today was a tough start, and the game overall. We didn't execute our plan at first and weren't focused. I'm glad the team showed character, fought to the end, and was able to win. Thanks to the crowd and the fans for supporting us.
