RC. Higher League A – Neighbors face off 9 march 2007

Photographer: Ekaterina Shelestova

BC Khimki-3 had BC Ryazan as their last opponent, a neighboring team on the Higher League A Tournament’s tables. An intense battle was waged in the Basketball Center between rivals of almost equal force, where luck brought fortune to the winner.


Day One: 80-94 (20-25, 17-27, 22-18, 21-24).
Top Scorers: Kuznetsov (22 + 8 rebounds), Isakov, Stepanenkov (14 each), Tsyganov (12).

Day Two: 88-91 ОТ (26-15, 23-18, 10-25, 19-20, 10-13).
Top Scorers: Stepanenkov (24 + 11 rebounds), Kuznetsov (23), Gutsev (10), Isakov (10 + 10 rebounds).

At the end of the first match, looking at the immediate statistics, it is apparent the game was, without a doubt, a face off between two opponents of equal strengths. All the statistical markers for both teams are similar. The visiting team may have attacked on the inside more often, with more luck, but they also fumbled more often than the yellow-n-blues. As for the remainder, it was the luck of the few, which at many moments, determined the results of the game

The following day the boys started off with full throttle, giving it their all However, in the third quarter the opponent was able to recover their losses. Again, the game’s results reflect the similarities of the teams on the charts, and they went to overtime. Khimki was now winning in the rebounds by almost double, Alexei Kuznetsov, ex captain, was launched as a booster from Khimki-2, and proved impressive. However, at the critical moments of the game the cold blood of the rivals got the best of the situation.
Author: Alexei Kuziashin