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Nizhny on a tough test in St Petersburg

A great series by the Novgorod team ended with a decisive defeat at home against CSKA. Zenit will be a tough nut to crack

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Zenit can be pleased with their season so far. Apart from getting to the top 32 of the Eurocup, Zenit have a solid 6-5 score in the VTB league, and have mostly lost against the top teams, while beating opponents of equal or lower quality (the defeat at Saratov being the exception). On Sunday they defeated Oktjabr, one of their direct competitors for the playoff, which makes the victory even more significant. Interestingly enough, they won just one quarter, but the 30-15 in the second period outweighed the losses in the remaining three periods.

- The game was important for us as we were facing a direct competitor. After two defeats we needed a victory. We played Culpepper aggressively in the first three quarters, and our players were tired in the end as we're missing Kulagin and Valiev- said Karasev, whose team was lead by Hodge with 22 points and 10 assists.

Unlike some of their previous games, in this one Zenit managed to overcome fatigue and hang on to their lead in the finish. Karasev mainly relied on just seven players, but managed to defend a double digit lead. A three pointer by Culpepper brought Oktjabr to -2, but that was seconds away from the end and too late for a comeback. Vikrov's free throws nailed the coffin.

While they managed to beat Himki in the Eurocup, Zenit have yet to beat a top level team in the VTB league. The weakened Nizhny is a great chance.

- We had three days to prepare prior to the game. The defeat of Nizhny against CSKA suggests we can play against that team. However, they are a strong an well tuned opponent with quality Russian and foreign players. It will be a tough game, but if we play as a team and show our best performance, anything is possible- said Karasev.

Nizhny had a great start to the season, managing to enter the Top 16 of the Euroleague without one of their best players and remaining the only undefeated team after the first 10 rounds of the VTB league. However, their positive series ended against CSKA, who only confirmed that they are the best Russian team right now. They completely outplayed Bagatskis' team, who were noticeably tired from the difficult match against UNICS just two days earlier.

Nizhny parried their opponent only in the first period (13-13), everything after that went in favor of the Moscow team. Their 16 offensive rebounds were of no help (39-34 overall), as CSKA played defense exceptionally well and limited Nizhny to just 27% shooting, and just 3/24 for three points.

- In order to play on par with CSKA, one has to be extremely aggressive and focused. Had we held on longer in the game we might have had a chance, but it went the other way. We did not help each other enough on defense, although the game was not bad overall. After 25 minutes we just had no more energy. It was not a disaster, we'll prepare for the Zenit game- said the Nizhny strategist.

Regardless of their defeat, Nizhny are still in a great situation. CSKA have a 12-1 score, Himki and Nizhny are at 10-1, while all the other teams have at least four defeats, which means Nizhny have huge capital for the rest of the season. However, we must point out that Nizhny played 8 of their 11 games at home and will be facing a tough schedule, although their victories at Kazan and Istanbul proved they can play away games too. Today they're facing a tough test at St Petersburg, where they'll be missing Rochestie once again.

- We're playing the last match of the year, and we want to win, naturally. This was a great year for Nizhny and we want it to end well too. Zenit are a quick team, the kind of opponent we've faced more than once this season. It will all depend on us and our ability to play a disciplined defense- said Bagatskis.

Upon his arrival to Nizhny,  Bagatskis stated he does not want his team to play tough basketball, but with Rochestie injured he has to rely more on defense. Of the five games he played without his best player, only the UNICS one ended at 152 points, the other four were at 143 or less. Zenit are in a similar situation as their rotation narrowed down after two important players were injured and this slowed down their game a bit. However, after a few poorer offensive performances, against Oktjabr they were once again themselves.