Week Ten Preview

Week 10 games will be played on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, highlighted by CSKA vs. Zenit and Avtodor vs. Nymburk.

Saturday, November 28

Avtodor (Russia) - Nymburk (Czech Republic)
Time: 4:00 PM (4:00 PM MSK)
Place: Kristall Sports Palace, Saratov, Russia
TV: NTV+ (Russia), TV Nova Sport (Czech Republic), United League TV
Stats: VTB-League.com preview

Avtodor: Saratov has played well at home, boasting a 4-1 record at the Kristall Sports Palace this season. But Nymburk is no pushover and currently sits 4th in the standings. A win would boost Avtodor above .500. Mexican center Paul Stoll is also making only his second appearance for Saratov in the VTB United League, coming off a huge game in the Eurocup earlier this week against Besiktas (21 points, 7 assists).

Nymburk: The Czechs lost to CSKA by 51 last week. Ronen Ginzburg's men face another test in Saratov, having posted a 1-3 record on the road this season. Can Nymburk avoid a 3rd straight defeat and hold onto 4th place in the standings?

UNICS (Russia) - Nizhny Novgorod (Russia)
Time: 6:00 PM (6:00 PM MSK)
Place: Basket Hall, Kazan, Russia
TV: NTV+ (Russia), United League TV
Stats: VTB-League.com preview

UNICS: Kazan stumbled a bit out of the gate, losing to Tsmoki-Minsk at home. Since then, the team is 6-1, including a huge win vs. Khimki last week. The team is led by Keith Langford, who's averaging a league-best 24.3 points per game and dropped 34 points on Khimki. UNICS has had success against Nizhny in the past, winning five of the last six meetings.

Nizhny Novgorod: Ainars Bagatskis's men are top five in the standings, despite injuries to two starters. Given the stiff competition at the top of the league, this is an important game for Nizhny. A loss could drop the club to 8th.

Sunday, November 29

Astana (Kazakhstan) - Krasny Oktyabr (Russia)
Time: 4:00 PM (1:00 PM MSK)
Place: SC Velotrek, Astana, Kazakhstan
TV: KAZ Sport (Kazakhstan), United League TV
Stats: VTB-League.com preview

Astana: The Kazakh champs are struggling, 15th in the standings with a 1-5 record. Traditionally tough at home, Astana has dropped games to UNICS and Tsmoki-Minsk at the Velotrek. But there's still plenty of time to bounce back, especially if the defense improves. Ramunas Butautas's men are giving up 91.3 points per game, 2nd worst in the league.

Krasny Oktyabr: Volgograd's three-game winning streak came to an end last week against Kalev. Making matters worse, the club parted ways with three foreign players, including top scorer JaJuan Johnson. A win in Kazakhstan is exactly what Oktyabr needs right now.

Khimki (Russia) - Enisey (Russia)
Time: 5:00 PM (5:00 PM MSK)
Place: BCMO Sports Complex, Khimki, Russia
TV: NTV+ (Russia), United League TV
Stats: VTB-League.com preview

Khimki: Moscow Region has struggled against elite competition, losing to CSKA, UNICS and Nizhny Novgorod in the past month. Marko Todorovic and Paul Davis are currently injured, weakening Khimki's frontcourt, but a win over Enisey would be a welcome sight and potentially boost Moscow Region into 3rd.

Enisey: Krasnoyarsk is gunning for a playoff berth this season. Knocking off Khimki on the road won't be easy, but Enisey pulled off the upset once before, beating Moscow Region 101-83 last April. A second straight win vs. Khimki would move Krasnoyarsk to 4-4.

Vita (Georgia) - VEF (Latvia)
Time: 6:30 PM (5:30 PM MSK)
Place: Tbilisi Sports Palace, Tbilisi, Georgia
TV: Silk TV Sport 3 (Georgia), Riga TV (Latvia), United League TV
Stats: VTB-League.com preview

Vita: Tbilisi is the only team in the league without a win, but will have an excellent opportunity on Sunday to erase the goose egg in the win column. VEF has only won once in its last five outings and is 2-7 overall.

VEF: Despite a 2-7 record, Carlos Frade's men have been competitive in almost every game. The Latvians are young and inexperienced, much like their Georgian opponent on Sunday. Expect an exciting, unpredictable outcome in Tbilisi.

CSKA (Russia) - Zenit (Russia)
Time: 7:00 PM (7:00 PM MSK)
Place: USH CSKA, Moscow, Russia
TV: NTV+ (Russia), United League TV
Stats: VTB-League.com preview

CSKA: The reigning champs face off against undefeated Zenit in the Game of the Week. Both teams are cruising in both the VTB United League and Europe. With a win on Sunday, CSKA can leapfrog St. Petersburg into 1st place in the standings.

Zenit: The visitors will be confident and prepared. Zenit has won seven straight to open the season and boasts the VTB United League October MVP, Ryan Toolson. After missing a few games in November, Toolson is healthy again and hopes to lead St. Petersburg to a statement win in Moscow against the Army Men.

Monday, November 30

Bisons (Finland) - Tsmoki-Minsk (Belarus)
Time: 6:30 PM (7:30 PM MSK)
Place: Loimaa Sports Hall, Loimaa, Finland
TV: Elisa Viihde (Finland), Belarus-5 (Belarus), United League TV
Stats: VTB-League.com preview

Bisons: Bisons trailed VEF by 21 points last week before storming back to win in the final seconds on a Tuukka Kotti buzzer-beater. Greg Gibson noted after the game that "the team that wants it more gets lucky". Playing at home, Bisons will try to reward the fans with another win in the VTB United League.

Tsmoki-Minsk: The Dragons also won in Week Nine, knocking off Astana by a point. The road win helped Tsmoki hold onto 8th place, while another victory would put Tsmoki two games above .500.

Kalev (Estonia) - Lokomotiv-Kuban (Russia)
Time: 6:30 PM (7:30 PM MSK)
Place: Saku Suurhall, Tallinn, Estonia
TV: NTV+ (Russia), SA Tallinna Televisioon (Estonia), United League TV
Stats: VTB-League.com preview

Kalev: Alar Varrak's men are gradually finding their stride. The Estonians cruised in Volgograd on Saturday to improve to 3-4. Lokomotiv-Kuban, however, presents an even bigger challenge. Second-worst in the league in scoring, Kalev could struggle against Loko's top-ranked defense.

Lokomotiv-Kuban: Krasnodar is 4-3, struggling to balance games in the VTB United League and Euroleague. Monday's game in Tallinn is practically a must-win for Georgios Bartzokas's men: a defeat could drop Kuban to 9th in the standings. At the same time, Loko boasts a 4-0 record all-time against Kalev and will be favored on the road.