«Enisey» Krasnoyarsk, Russia vs. «Bisons» Loimaa, Finland

Enisey defeated Bisons in Krasnoyarsk on Sunday evening, 88-64. The home team's defense set the tone early, limiting the visitors to 12 points in the 1st quarter. Enisey didn't look back, cruising to a 24-point win.

Recap
Enisey dominated the opening period. Tony Taylor's mid-range jumper sparked the offense and Tim Olbrecht and Pavel Spiridonov also chipped in. Thanks to the defense, Krasnoyarsk was able to quickly take a commanding lead, jumping ahead 34-16 midway through the second period.

Bisons briefly rallied to close the first half. A pair of 3-pointers and improved defense got the visitors going. Entering halftime, Enisey's lead had been sliced to seven, 43-36.

The home team responded in the 3rd quarter, holding Bisons to 14 points to restore a 17-point advantage, 67-50. Olbrecht and Spiridonov led the charge for Enisey, combining for 11 points.

That was it for Bisons. The visitors were outscored 21-14 in the final period, dropping an 88-64 decision. Poor shooting doomed Bisons, who were 7-22 from beyond the arc and shot 38% overall from the field.

Star of the Game
Pavel Spiridonov. The Russian forward was Enisey's most reliable option on offense. He scored under the basket and knocked down three 3-pointers, finishing with a game-high 17 points.

Stat of the Game
2 - number of offensive rebounds in the second half for Bisons. That was a big factor, given Bisons pulled down 11 offensive boards in the first half to keep the score close.

Quotes
Enisey head coach Oleg Okulov:
- Above all, we played well on defense today. The guys are working and that aspect of the game is getting better for us. There was a stretch in the 2nd quarter when we thought we already had the game won and we started playing more one-on-one basketball. Our opponent punished us immediately, but halftime worked to our advantage and we put everything back in place. I think the guys worked well today and wanted it.

Bisons head coach Greg Gibson:
- First of all, congratulations to Enisey on their good play and win. I don't completely understand what happened to my team. We weren't ready for the game. I though we would have a shot and we're physically prepared to battle Enisey, but when we went down by 20 in the 1st quarter, it was clear that it would be tough to come back from that hole.

Stats