On November 20, the VTB United League match against Lokomotiv-Kuban took place for the MINSK men's team. The opponent came to Minsk after a tense match with Zenit, almost beating the reigning champions, and clearly charged to take revenge on the floor. Meanwhile, in the Minsk team, in comparison with the previous games, there was a castling. The injured Zach Smith and captain Aliaksei Trastsinetski did not play in the game due to indisposition, but the audience was able to watch the debut of Supreme Hannah. Alas, the result of the match turned out to be in favor of the opponent from Krasnodar. Final score – 70:92 (16:18, 21:28, 20:23, 13:23).
Starting fives
MINSK: Daniil Kasko, Benjamin-Pavel Dodoo, Darol Hernandez Zinenko, Supreme Shakur Hannah, Uladzislau Blizniuk.
Lokomotiv-Kuban: Jaylen Barford, Alexandr Shcherbenev, Andrei Martiuk, Dmitrii Uzinski, Darral Willis.
Game scenario
Rostislav Vergun's team showed an excellent start – Uladzislau Blizniuk did not let the opponent go into a fast break and threw the first “three-point” shot into the ring “Loko” in the third minute of the game. Then Daniil Kasko got another +2 in the piggy bank of MINSK, and Darol Hernandez Zinenko led his team ahead – 8:5. Unfortunately, Lokomotiv managed to regain the lead in quick attacks. This arrangement did not suit Kiryl Sitnik, who “three-point" and +1 with a penalty equalized the score on the scoreboard. Until the end of the first quarter, the opponents were not ready to give each other the advantage, the first 10 minutes of the game ended with a score of 16:18.
After Lokomotiv-Kuban made an 8-0 breakthrough at the beginning of the second quarter, Rostislav Vergun took a timeout. The opponent began to play more aggressively in attacks, due to which he gained a double-digit advantage (22:34). With a three-point debut shot in the VTB United League, MINSK newcomer Supreme Hannah reduced the double-digit gap of his team (28:37). Uladzislau Blizniuk became the undisputed leader in the second quarter of Minsk, who managed to get 8 points in the team standings. Vlad did not allow Alexander Sekulic's team to go on a big break with a double–digit advantage - 37:46.
A real thriller unfolded on the court in the third quarter, when Minsk residents managed to score 15 points in five minutes as opposed to 9 from Lokomotiv-Kuban. Kiryl Sitnik paired with Uladzislau Blizniuk charged 5 (!) “three-point” shots at once. However, after a series of blunders on our part, the Krasnodar team managed to regain their leading position on the guest site. The quarter ended with a score of 57:69.
Interchange
And again a brilliant “three-point” Uladzislau Blizniuk at the start of the final quarter reduced the difference in the score between the teams. However, the Krasnodar team began to act more aggressively both in defense and in attack – an unexpectedly quick jerk of the opponent and “+17” on the scoreboard at Lokomotiv-Kuban forced the head coach of Minsk residents to take another timeout. Unfortunately, the psychological pressure affected the Minsk residents, our team lost the match with a score of 70:92.
Figure: 9727 – so many fans in the arena supported our team today, thereby making a bid for the largest match attendance of the season. Thanks to everyone for the incredible and powerful energy, we are waiting for everyone at the next games!
The most productive:
MINSK: Uladzislau Blizniuk – 22 + 4 REB + 3 AST + 2 STL, Kiryl Sitnik – 13 + 3 REB + 1 AST, Supreme Hannah – 9 + 2 REB + 3 AST.
Lokomotiv-Kuban: Andrei Martiuk - 22 + 6 REB + 3 AST + 4 STL, Jaylen Barford – 21 + 4 REB + 6 AST + 2 STL, Darral Willis – 14 + 9 REB + 2 AST.
Rostislav Vergun, head coach of MINSK:
— Unfortunately, we had enough for three quarters, and the game consists of four. The opponent materialized his advantage in anthropometry and skill, confidently bringing the game to victory.
On November 24, MINSK will play with Enisey. The team has almost no time to recover, there is a path to Krasnoyarsk almost 5 thousand kilometers long to the opponent's home court ahead. The match starts at 3:30 PM Minsk time. We are rooting for our people!