Nizhny's Wild Comeback Vs. Khimki

One week after defeating the reigning champs CSKA, Nizhny Novgorod beat runners-up Khimki. Unlike the win over CSKA, Nizhny trailed most of the game before squeaking out a dramatic victory.

Konstantin Kucher identifies the key moments in Nizhny Novgorod's comeback win for Breaking It Down.

Betting on Tyrese Rice
Alexey Shved was the star for Khimki all night. Nonetheless, Rimas Kurtinaitis decided to turn to Tyrese Rice in the final minutes. He brought the ball up the court for Khimki in crunch time and made most of the decisions on offense.

At the time, there was nothing strange about Kurtinaitis's decision. Rice is one of the best in Europe when the game is on the line, but that was not the case against Nizhny. Looking to close out a win, Rice committed two turnovers and missed two of three shots.

One of those missed shots could have won the game. Despite Rice's struggles, Kurtinaitis trusted him on the final possession. The American got a decent look, but his shot was off the mark.

Nizhny's unexpected 3-point opportunities
Nizhny did not emphasize perimeter offense in the final minutes, but still managed to score twice from downtown. In fact, neither 3-pointer came from the halfcourt offense. Kaspars Berzins knocked down his game-winner after Nizhny's full-court pressure led to a steal.

Similarly, Victor Rudd got a '3' to drop after an offensive board by Vladimir Ivlev. The Nizhny big man didn't know what to do until he noticed James Augustine had left Rudd wide open and immediately passed the ball to his teammate.

Rudd's shot from way downtown was on the money.

Nizhny's offense in the paint
Apart from those two 3's, Nizhny did not attack much from outside. Despite trailing, the home team didn't force anything and tried to run its offense. The strategy worked: Khimki expected a barrage of 3-pointers and wasn't properly prepared.

For example, with a minute left, Nizhny scored an easy basket in the paint. Even a bad inbounds pass didn't make a difference. 

The next possession was even more impressive. Nizhny got Khimki to switch on defense, forcing Rice to defend a much taller Antonov under the basket.

Koponen's reaction says it all.

The Finn had to choose between helping Rice and defending his man on the perimeter.

Earlier in the game, Koponen probably would have helped out in the paint, but this time he stayed back to defend the perimeter. As a result, the home team got the ball to Antonov, where he was fouled by Rice. Antonov converted both free throws.

Trapping Rice
Rice's turnover in the final seconds was the turning point in the game. Khimki's lack of preparation was shocking during this possession. The visitors expected Nizhny to foul, but the home team had a surprise for them.

Nizhny Novgorod had already used the exact same tactic during the previous possession. Applying full-court pressure, big men Rudd and Berzins tried to trap Rice.

Berzins, however, was unable to seal the sideline, allowing Rice to get away.

The next time around, Nizhny's strategy worked like a charm as guards Dmitry Khvostov and Maxim Grigoryev forced Rice into a corner.

While Rice looked for help, Grigoryev knocked the ball loose, right into Khvostov's hands.

The ball then went to Berzins, who was wide open and knocked down the game-winning '3'.

Nizhny Novgorod beat the top two teams in the league, CSKA and Khimki, in back-to-back outings. In both games, Ainars Bagatskis's men showed their toughness and ability to play cool under pressure.

Each win was different. Against the Red-Blues, Nizhny Novgorod led most of the contest. Despite a CSKA comeback, Nizhny pulled out the win in overtime.

Against Khimki, Nizhny had to play catch-up and still managed to secure a surprising win. Nizhny has a lot of momentum, but will it have the same energy and focus against future opponents?

Konstantin Kucher