CSKA — Lokomotiv Kuban, 18 February 2022

PRE-GAME BREAKDOWN

After the victory over Astana, the Army Team did not leave Megasport, continuing to practice at the main arena.

The first game against Krasnodar on the road ended in favor of the Muscovites, who won with a big margin. Since then, Loko replaced Yevgeny Pashutin with Branko Maksimovic, and in early February, they lured VTB United League scoring leader Jaylen Barford from Astana.

WORD TO THE COACH

Dimitris Itoudis, CSKA head coach:

We have a lot of obstacles because of injuries but we are preparing good and serious. We have a serious opponent in front of us, they have a new addition, they signed Barford, the league’s first scorer from Astana. They also have McCollum, Motley, Williams, Thompson and other young kids, the combination of experience and youth, the chemistry is good. Loko likes to run the open court, they are very physical, they have players who are able to play high-tempo [game], one of their weapons is scoring easy buckets in transition, this is something to consider. With the new coach they adopted different combinations of lineups, in the EuroCup games they showed some zone pressure and other zone defenses. Overall they bring a lot of energy and strategy on the court.

PAST MATCHUPS

Wins/losses: 58-11,
In Moscow: 32-3, in Rostov: 9-1, in Krasnodar: 16-6, on neutral arena (Berlin): 1-0.
Game of the 2021-22 VTB United League season:

05-Dec-2021. Lokomotiv Kuban – CSKA: 69-88 (+19)

SHORT DOSSIER

Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar, Russia
Founded: 1946
Colors: red, green, white
Home court: Basket Hall (7,500)
President: Andrey Vedishchev
Interim head coach: Branko Maksimovic
Website: www.lokobasket.com
Trophy case: Euroleague bronze winner (2016), EuroCup winner (2013), VTB United League runner-up (2013), BEKO PBL bronze winner (2011/12), Eurochallenge runner-up (2011), FIBA Europe Cup runner-up (2005), Russian Cup winner (2018)