«Nymburk» Nymburk, Czech Republic vs. «Khimki» Khimki, Russia

Khimki defeated Nymburk on the road, 94-90. Both teams were battling for playoff positioning and put on a show in the Czech Republic. In the end, Tyrese Rice and Alexey Shved were simply too much for the Czechs, combining for 56 points to lead Khimki to victory. With the win, Khimki moves within half a game of Loko and Zenit for 3rd place with a week and a half to play in the regular season.

Intro
Both teams desperately needed a win. Nymburk had a chance to create some separation with Nizhny Novgorod in the battle for 7th place, while Khimki looked to keep its top-3 hopes alive and gain home-court advantage in the first round.

Nymbuk relied on its transition game and Khimki attacked from beyond the arc in the 1st quarter, as the two clubs battled to a near draw, 25-24 in favor of Moscow Region.

During the 2nd quarter, the home team began to pull away. Vojtech Hruban got hot from outside, and Khimki struggled to score in the paint, putting Nymburk on top by 13 at halftime.

The game shifted dramatically in the second half thanks to Khimki's star combo of Rice and Shved. The dynamic backcourt scored and distributed seemingly at will, putting the visitors on top by two, 68-66, entering the final period. Howard Sant-Roos scored nine points in the quarter for Nymburk, but it wasn't enough to stem the Khimki tide.

Turning Point
Nymburk responded, however, in the 4th quarter, regaining the lead thanks to a pretty alley-oop finish from Hruban and a pair of 3-pointers by Michael Dixon.

After Sant-Roos put the home team on top by one, 86-85, with a little over three minutes to play, Rice responded with a knockout nine-point run. The American drilled three consecutive 3-pointers and the defense held Nymburk to three points, putting Khimki on top by five.

Nymburk had several chances down the stretch, but couldn't connect from the line or beyond the arc, allowing Khimki to secure the 94-90 victory.

Star Player
Tyrese Rice. He was unstoppable in Nymburk, recording 31 points, four rebounds, eight assists and zero turnovers, including three consecutive 3's down the stretch. This was one of his best games of the season.

Stat of the Game
56 - number of points scored by Rice and Shved. The lion's share were scored on the perimeter as Rice knocked down six and Shved connected on seven. This is the first time in league history that two teammates have made six or more 3's in one game.

Snapshot