By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
With a tremendous fourth quarter (13-25), Unicaja Malaga beat CSKA Moscow 78-86 on the road and remained the only undefeated team in the competition (5-0). On the other hand, the Russians suffered their first defeat (4-1), as this was Malaga’s first win against CSKA on the road after five years.
For the winners, Edwin Jackson had 24 points, with Mindaugas Kuzminskas adding 22. For the losing squad, Cory Higgins scored 17 points, as four more players were in double digits.
In the beginning, CSKA Moscow had control of the game and was retaining a small lead throughout the entire first quarter, which ended with the Muscovites in front by three (20-17). Later, Malaga responded with an 8-0 run and took a two-point advantage (23-25). Consequently, the match became a derby, with consecutive lead changes, as the Spaniards managed to remain competitive and closed the first half with an one-point deficit (43-42).
In the second half, the Russians were executing well on both ends of the floor and earned an eight-point advantage in the middle of the third quarter (58-50). The Spaniards, though, cut the deficit to just two (58-56), with a 6-0 run of their own, but CSKA remained solid and was in front by four points (65-61), after 30 minutes in the game. In the last quarter, Malaga made a great start. With a 12-4 run, they took a four-point advantage (69-73) and extended it to seven (71-78), five minutes before the end of the game. The Spanish team continued to be dominant and had a double-digit lead (76-86), with two minutes to go. The Muscovites were unable to make a big come-back and, as a result, Malaga secured a big victory (78-86).