Week Three Recap

Baburin's buzzer-beater, drama in Krasnoyarsk, record-setting offense from Khimki and more as we recap Week 3 of the VTB United League regular season.

Spotlight
Tsmoki-Minsk shocked Enisey in overtime, 94-93.

Last season, Tsmoki ended an 0-6 start with a win in Krasnoyarsk. It's been a different story in 2015. Minsk enjoyed a productive offseason, keeping its core together and adding Garrett Stutz (ex-Nymburk) and Anthony Hilliard (ex-Bisons).

On October 7, Tsmoki opened its VTB United League campaign with a huge upset, defeating UNICS by eight on the road. Six days later, the Belarusians looked to make it two straight, traveling east to Krasnoyarsk for a showdown with Enisey.

The visitors trailed by 10 late in regulation, but a 14-4 run to finish the 4th quarter, sparked by 10 points from guard Justin Gray, sent the game to overtime. In the extra period, Gray knocked down a baseline jumper with three seconds left to give his team the win and a perfect 2-0 start.

Shot of the Week
Nizhny Novgorod survived against Bisons, 71-69.

Nizhny suffered a blow on October 4, losing star guard Eric Maynor to a severe knee injury in the win over VEF.

Against Bisons on Sunday, Nizhny started strong, grabbing a 14-point advantage early in the 2nd quarter. But the visitors came roaring back, cutting the deficit to one at halftime and leading by as much as eight in the 4th quarter.

Desperate for offense, the home team got 10 huge points from captain Semen Antonov in the final period, setting up an exciting finish. Trailing by a point with 13 seconds left to play, Antonov found Evgeny Baburin on the perimeter. The Russian guard was 0-4 from downtown, but didn't blink in the clutch, draining the shot at the buzzer to give Nizhny the win and drop Bisons to 0-2.  

Hot Hand
Avtodor defeated Kalev, 68-60.

Both teams were disciplined on defense, holding the opponent to less than 40% from the field. Entering the 4th quarter, Avtodor held a fragile 52-50 lead. That's when Evgeny Kolesnikov took over. After scoring just five points in the first 30 minutes, the Russian guard erupted for 11 points in five minutes to put Saratov ahead by eight, 64-56, with 3:32 to play. The home team only scored four more points in the period, but it proved enough, helping the Russian club secure its second win of the season.

Cruise Control
CSKA shut down Krasny Oktyabr at home, 85-67.

Krasny Oktyabr put on a show in Tbilisi on October 4, scoring 110, before dropping a 94-93 heartbreaker in St. Petersburg three days later. Sunday featured a third straight road game for the Volgograd club, this time against reigning champs CSKA.

Averaging 101.5 points per game entering the contest, Krasny Oktyabr's offense went cold in Moscow. The visitors shot 42% from the field, including 27% (6-22) from downtown. CSKA was much more effective, converting 54% of its field-goal attempts. Nando de Colo led the way for the home team, scoring 24 points to go with five assists and three steals. At the other end, Oktyabr star D.J. Cooper managed just five points along with six turnovers as his team dropped to 1-2 in the league.

Accuracy
Lokomotiv-Kuban dominated Astana in Krasnodar, 99-66.

Lokomotiv's loss to Nymburk in the first game of the season was a rude wake-up call and Krasnodar took no chances at home against Astana. Georgios Bartzokas's club knocked down 12 3-pointers on the way to a 33-point win. Four players scored in double figures, while the team shot 58% from the field and dished out 25 assists. Loko improves to 1-1, while Astana starts the season 0-1. 

Fan of the Week

Redemption
UNICS held off Nymburk, 94-87.

UNICS opened the 2015-16 campaign with a loss at home to Tsmoki-Minsk. On Sunday, Nymburk paid a visit to Kazan, hoping to improve to 3-0 after victories over Lokomotiv and Kalev.

UNICS led by six at halftime and, despite trailing briefly in the 3rd quarter, took control for good in the 4th thanks to a 17-7 run midway through the period. Summer signing Joaquin Colom led the way for Kazan, putting up 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the win.

Encounter of the Week
Zenit defeated VEF, 91-76.

Sunday's game featured the first meeting between VEF and Latvian star Janis Timma since he moved to St. Petersburg over the summer. Not surprisingly, Timma played a big role in Zenit's win, helping the Russians pull away in the 3rd quarter and finishing the game with 15 points in 27 minutes. Ryan Toolson was even more impressive for the Blue-White-Sky Blues, dropping 17 points to go with eight rebounds and nine assists. Zenit is now 3-0, tied with Khimki for the best record in the league.

MVP
Ryan Toolson (Zenit). The American guard has adapted quickly to his new club. He scored 17 points against VEF (6-13 from the field) to go with eight rebounds, nine assists, one steal and an efficiency rating of 26. 

Stats of the Week
38 and 19.

Khimki Moscow Region set two new league records in Monday's 117-73 win over Vita: most assists (38) and 3-point field goals (19) in a game.

The Russian powerhouse also scored the second-most points in league history.

Quotable
Nizhny Novgorod head coach Ainars Bagatskis:
- Perhaps some thought this game wouldn't be that tough. We knew, though, that it wouldn't be easy given the different shocks at the start of the season. Prior to the game we focused on Bisons' transition game. They're very quick to find open men on the fast break. We started strong and played with patience, but once our lead reached double digits, we stopped respecting the game. We simply gave the ball away and committed unnecessary turnovers. Paradoxically, the turning point came when we went with a small lineup, even though we have a height advantage on Bisons. As for Baburin's decisive shot...he was due to hit one of five 3-point attempts. Of course, it's better to win ugly than to lose pretty.

Play of the Week

Picture of the Week