By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Zenit rolled Enisey, 82-55, to clinch a berth in the Semifinals of the VTB United League Playoffs on Thursday.
Alex Poythress was the top scorer of Game 3 putting up 18 points for the Saint Petersburg outlet. Tyson Carter registered 14 points, seven assists, and six rebounds in Arena Sever. Sergey Karasev and Jordan Mickey threw in 11 points each in the conclusion of the Quarterfinals’ best-of-five series. For the team based in Krasnoyarsk, Timofei Gerasimov scored a team-high 15 points and Vladislav Trushkin followed with 13 points against his former side.
Top-seeded CSKA and fourth-seeded Lokomotiv Kuban swept Nizhny Novgorod and Parma PariBet, respectively, to progress to the Semifinals on Wednesday. Alexey Shved banked in a game-high 20 points for the team based in Moscow and Errick McCollum packing 21 points paved the way for the Krasnodar outfit.
Game 3 between Avtodor Saratov and UNICS Kazan is scheduled to take place on Friday. The side coached by Croatian play-caller Velimir Perasovic carries a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series. Another best-of-five series will follow for the teams reaching the Semifinals, but a best-of-seven Final series will determine the champion.
Due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the war in Eastern Europe, Euroleague Basketball opted to withdraw the participation of CSKA, UNICS, Zenit, and Lokomotiv Kuban from the 2021-22 edition of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and 7DAYS EuroCup in late March. All four teams have since been limited to the bottom end of the 2021-22 VTB season.
Photo Credit: Basketball club Zenit