«Khimki» Khimki, Russia vs. «Krasnye Krylia» Samara, Russia

In the final game of the regular season, Khimki Moscow Region survived at the buzzer to defeat Krasnye Krylia Samara at home, 82-81. Coached by Rimas Kurtinaitis, Khimki played an outstanding second quarter, but lost its lead just as quickly in the third. The game ended in dramatic fashion. After Petteri Koponen’s 3-pointer gave Khimki a one-point lead with just under four seconds to play, Krylia missed twice to seal the win for the home team, as well as 1st place in Group A.

Intro
The stakes were high for both Khimki and Krasnye Krylia in the final game of the VTB United League regular season. Moscow Region needed to overtake UNICS for 1st place in Group A, while a loss would drop the team to 3rd and wipe out the first-round playoff bye. As for Krylia, a win in Khimki would mean 2nd place in the group and a loss – 3rd place.

Krasnye Krylia did a better job early scoring in the paint. Fast breaks and offensive rebounds helped the visitors to a great start. Their success was punctuated by Aaron Miles’s alley-opp to Nikita Balashov with three minutes to play in the quarter. Khimki, after trailing by as much as six in the period, closed the gap to two, 22-20, through ten minutes. A perfect 7-7 from the line played a role in the comeback.

Paul Davis, Moscow Region’s leading scorer, had to watch the game from the bleachers due to a leg injury. The American usually comes off the bench in the VTB United League and dominates second quarters from the paint. Kresimir Loncar had to fill his shoes tonight. After an unproductive first quarter, Loncar exploded for eight points in the first two and a half minutes of the second period. Coupled with improved defense, Khimki opened the quarter on a 12-3 run.

Despite starting well, Krasnye Krylia shot poorly in the second quarter, limited by Khimki’s improved fast break defense. Matters worsened halfway through the period when the home team caught fire from beyond the arc. Sergey Monya, Petteri Koponen and Vitaliy Fridzon connected on three 3-pointers in less than a minute to put Khimki in full control. Heading to the locker rooms, the visitors trailed, 51-39.

The game bogged down after halftime, which should have favored Khimki. Indeed, the lead ballooned to 15 points, a dream scenario for coach Rimas Kurtinaitis. Moscow Region, however, lost its focus and allowed the visitors to storm back with an 11-0 run in the span of a minute and a half. Andre Smith dropped two 3-pointers during the spurt. Chester Simmons even hit a wild shot at the buzzer that banked in from beyond the arc. Khimki’s lead stood at 68-64 with 10 minutes to play.

Turning Point
The favored team clung to the remains of its lead in the final quarter, but Balashov’s offensive rebound and put-back after a Smith miss tied the game at 73 with 4:46 to play. From that point on, neither team took more than a three-point lead.

Dmitriy Kulagin put Krylia on top with 57 seconds to play, 81-79. Both teams then missed 3-pointers, leaving Khimki with one final chance. As the clock ticked down, Koponen came off a screen at the top of the key and received the pass. He faked and let the first defender go flying past him, before knocking down a 3-pointer with 2.7 seconds left to give Khimki the lead.

But the game still wasn’t over. Sergei Bazarevich called timeout. On the first in-bounds play, Smith’s lay-up was blocked out-of-bounds by James Augustine. With 0.4 seconds left on the clock, Chester Simmons almost won the game with a tip-in from 10 feet, but his effort bounced harmlessly off the rim. Khimki wins!

Moscow Regions ends the season in 1st place in the group of death. Krasnye Krylia, following a terrific regular season, takes on Triumph in the first round of the playoffs. The VTB United League regular season ended in scintillating fashion. Now the playoffs await.

Star of the Game
Petteri Koponen. The 24-year-old Finnish guard ended the season on fire. He earned MVP honors last week in the Euroleague. Today he saved Moscow Region with his 3-pointers, the most important one coming with 2.7 seconds left on the clock.

Stat of the Game
60 – both teams made 15 free throws today. Khimki only needed 16 attempts, while it took Krasnye Krylia 25. Charity stripe struggles cost Krylia the game.

Quotes
Khimki head coach Rimas Kurtinaitis:
- First of all, I'm happy about our win since this was an important game. Everything turned out well for us. We were in control most of the game. We just lost our concentration at one point. I'm satisfied with the outcome. The guys played hard. We lost the defensive rebounding battle, but Koponen's shot gave us the win.

Krasnye Krylia head coach Sergei Bazarevich:
- Most importantly, we played hard and had a chance to win. Unfortunately, Koponen made a difficult 3-pointer and prevented even an overtime. I'm satisfied with how the guys executed following the timeout. Smith just lacked a bit of confidence and patience in order to score under the basket. We'd be in a very different mood right now if he had.

Top Performers
Khimki: Kresimir Loncar – 16 points, seven rebounds; Petteri Koponen – 16 points; Sergey Monya – 14 points, five assists.

Krasnye Krylia: Chester Simmons – 17 points, five rebounds; Andre Smith – 15 points, 11 rebounds; Aaron Miles – 13 points, seven rebounds, 10 assists.