DYBL. Stage 2 — Semi Final in Kazan16 march 2007

In the fourth day, Khimki’s players clinched their fourth victory for this stage. Meanwhile, Dynamo Moscow was beat out of the race for the tournament medals by the Moscow Army team. This last game ended with a resounding victory for the Moscow Region team: 93-66. After this success, BC Khimki took the lead for this grouping.

In a telephone interview, Oleg REZVY gave his views on the match:

— The game against CSKA was very difficult for us. We started out well, leading in the first half with 16-17 points. But, something happened in the third quarter, and we couldn’t score. As a result, the opponent evened out the score, but the boys boosted their game, and the spirit of victory allowed us to take it to a win. The top scorer was Mikhail Loginov, with 18 points.

— Later we had a one-day break, and we used it well to practice train and watch videos of the upcoming rival. Then the boys rested up, and took some time to walk in the pine forest surrounding the Basketball Center.

— During the subsequent game against Dynamo Moscow, we started out bad, and were losing at the start. However, our preparation was fruitful. In the second quarter the team armed itself and the players were motivated to win the quarter. In the third quarter they zoned pressed and improved the score, gaining until a +32. With 5 minutes left for the siren we launched our bench players with little game time. This was our best game for sure. We were able to beat the opponent in rebounds, defense, and even offense (from the arc the percentage exceeded 50: with 14:27 attempts).

Top Scorers: Karpenko (16), Babunashvili, Loginov y Agababian (15 cada uno), Novikov (13)

— Tomorrow we play the tournament’s home team, UNICS. However, the results of that game won’t affect the position of the teams on the table: we have already consolidated our place at number one.

We congratulate the Coaches!
Author: Alexei Kuziashin