The second match of the semi-final of the Belarusian championship between our men's team and the Vitebsk “Rubon” took place today in the sports complex BC “MINSK”. The victory was won by the wards of Rostislav Vergun with the score 85:67 (26:18, 19:22, 22:15, 18:12).
Ruslan Boydakov's team, having worked on the mistakes after the last game, today demonstrated a more confident fight in the first half of the match and did not let the Minsk residents go by a large margin. In MINSK in the first quarter, Aliaksei Trastsinetski and DaQuan Bracey scored accurate ”three-point“. The captain of the Minsk team took on the role of leader and also scored three hits from an average distance. On the first break, the opponents left with a score of 26:18.
In the second quarter, Uladzislau Mikulski made repeated hits into the opponent's ring. Numerous fouls by Rubon also allowed Minsk residents to score 7 points from the penalty line. The teams went to the big break with a score of 45:40.
In the third quarter, our team did not allow Rubon to implement numerous attacks. Uladzislau Blizniuk pleased the audience with two accurate “threes", and DaQuan Bracey was twice accurate when throwing from an average distance. The score before the final quarter was 67:55.
At the start of the fourth quarter, Uladzislau Mikulski single-handedly made a breakthrough of 4 points, and another breakthrough from Aliaksei Trastsinetski and DaQuan Bracey secured the leadership of Minsk on the home court. The match ended with the victory of MINSK with a score of 85:67.
The most productive:
“MINSK”: DaQuan Bracey – 26 + 1 REB + 6 AST + 5 STL, Aliaksei Trastsinetski – 15 + 7 REB + 1 AST + 1 STL, Uladzislau Mikulski – 12 + 4 REB + 4 AST + 2 STL.
"Rubon": Ruslan Pishcheyko – 14 + 4 REB + 1 AST , Anton Shchurko – 13 + 5 REB + 1 AST , Maxim Kozlovets – 12 + 9 REB + 2 AST + 1 STL.
MINSK head coach Rostislav Vergun: “Such games give a lot of ground for reflection. You can explain everything, but these explanations do not satisfy me as a coach. When the opposing team takes all the tied balls in certain combinations, it means that they have much more desire to play and win. It's a little confusing for me. Those guys who went out and did the result – they are great, show their level, please the fans and demonstrate why they play in the best team in the country. We are preparing to leave for Vitebsk. The opponent plays very men's basketball, I am very grateful to them for that. We are waiting for a beautiful basketball in Vitebsk.”
Forward of MINSK Daniil Kasko: “My shots didn't hit, there was a bad start in defense. We tried to run, but not everything worked out.”
The next game of the semifinal series will be held at the opponent's home ground in Vitebsk on May 5. The meeting starts at 18:00.