Game Of The Week: Loko's Defense Or Zenit's Offense?

Lokomotiv-Kuban Krasnodar hosts Zenit St. Petersburg in the Game of the Week.

Who:
Lokomotiv-Kuban, 2014-15 VTB United League semifinalists
vs.
Zenit, 2014-15 VTB United League quarterfinalists

Where:
Basket Hall (capacity 7,500), Krasnodar, Russia

When:
4:30 PM (4:30 PM MSK), January 3, 2016

TV:
Match TV, United League TV

Face To Face
Krasnodar and St. Petersburg met twice during the 2014-15 regular season with Lokomotiv coming out on top both times, 89-74 in St. Petersburg and 86-64 in Krasnodar.

Looking Back

Intrigue
Lokomotiv-Kuban finished 2015 on a high note, winning twice in the VTB United League (vs. Enisey and Tsmoki-Minsk) and once in the Euroleague (vs. Cedevita). But Loko will need to be careful on Sunday. The team struggled this fall to balance a demanding Euroleague slate with VTB United League competition, stumbling to a 5-5 start in the VTB United League. Team president Andrey Vedishchev has acknowledged the negative impact of frequent travel, which may have contributed to the slow start. 7th in the league standings, Krasnodar needs to get off on the right foot in 2016.

Zenit is in a very different position. St. Petersburg sits at 8-1, 2nd in the standings. Zenit has also been on break since December 21, when the club knocked off Sakhalin in the Russian Cup. The team's last league appearance was on December 13, a win vs. Nizhny Novgorod.

Zenit has enjoyed an easy schedule to date, with just one game against top competition: a blowout loss to CSKA. St. Petersburg would love to notch a statement win in Krasnodar vs. Lokomotiv-Kuban.

Lokomotiv-Kuban dreams of climbing the standings. Zenit is rested and fresh, but hasn't played in weeks. Not surprisingly, both teams desperately want a win in this Sunday showdown.

The matchup between the league's 2nd-ranked defense (Lokomotiv-Kuban, 70.3 ppg allowed) and Zenit's 3rd-ranked offense (89.4 ppg scored) also promises to be intriguing.

Question
How will Zenit's frontcourt perform?

Zenit lost leader Kyle Landry to a season-ending injury in the game against Nizhny. Andrei Desyatnikov is also out with an injury. St. Petersburg was forced to sign Daniil Solovyev from Ural, but the team has had little time to practice and fine-tune its new frontcourt lineup. As for Krasnodar, Anthony Randolph and Nikita Balashov recently returned from injuries, giving Lokomotiv a decided advantage down low. The Blue-White-Sky Blues will have a tough time handling Krasnodar's big men.

Duel
Malcolm Delaney (Lokomotiv-Kuban) vs. Ryan Toolson (Zenit).

"It's better when Malcolm plays for your team and not against you." That's what Lokomotiv-Kuban head coach Georgios Bartzokas said after the win over Cedevita. Delaney recorded 31 points and eight assists in the game. He takes the court again on Sunday and will look to shred Zenit's defense at home. The Blue-White-Sky Blues will put their trust in Toolson, the team's top scorer and distributor. This should be an incredible matchup between creative playmakers and could very well decide the outcome.

Quotes
Lokomotiv-Kuban head coach Georgios Bartzokas:
- Zenit will be another excellent test for us. We need to win as many games in a row as possible in the VTB United League in order to get to the position that we feel we deserve. Despite the holidays, the players have been very focused at practice and we should play good basketball.

Zenit head coach Vasily Karasev:
- Lokomotiv-Kuban is a good European team. Kuban deserved to reach the next stage of the Euroleague and they have an advantage because everyone is healthy. We are having some issues at a few positions, plus we haven't played in a long time. I think the first few minutes of the game will be the most difficult for us to  handle. Overall, we are ready for a challenging game.

Prediction
- I'm confident this game will match the expectations of even the most demanding fans, - says former Russian national team star and current league deputy general director, Ilona Korstin. - Zenit is in 2nd place right now and playing extremely well, but the injury to team leader Kyle Landry is unfortunate. Loko got Anthony Randolph back from injury and the Railwaymen need to catch the league leaders. The game will be in Krasnodar, which is why Kuban will have a bit of an advantage...everyone knows how great the fans are there! It's hard to play your best basketball right after the holidays, but I'm confident both Loko and Zenit will do everything they can to win.