Translated material
Army blitz
CSKA knocked out Dynamo in five minutes of the second quarter
The Super League tournament, which determines the eight teams that continue to fight in the playoffs of the Russian championship, will end only on May 1, but already now we can name the main disappointment of the regular season of the national championship - this is Dynamo Moscow. Last Saturday, the “blue and white” were defeated for the second time in the capital’s derby by CSKA – 74:81. Dynamo remains in fifth place in the standings, which does not at all correspond to the club’s solid budget or the selection of high-quality performers. And it’s not even that head coach Dusan Ivkovic’s team again lost to the club where this specialist spent the previous three seasons. The intrigue that was expected from the confrontation between two historically irreconcilable rivals died by the big break, when CSKA led by exactly 20 points - 49:29.The remaining two quarters of the derby were spent in Dynamo's attempts to catch up with the army team, and in the last minute the home team even managed to get within five points of the "red-blues", but this was more likely due to the loss of motivation among the army team. For the majority of the fans in the hall, after the first half of the match it was clear that the 20-point deficit with the class opponent CSKA simply could not be won back.
The beginning of the game did not foretell a quick outcome; on the contrary, a serious struggle was expected. The tone was set by the best Russian in Dynamo, Dmitry Domani, who hit the hoop with a shot from behind the six-meter line. A few minutes after Fotsis’ hit, the “blue and white” led 9:4. We must pay tribute to CSKA coach Ettore Messina. He immediately began to react to the mistakes of this or that player, to the need to change the pattern of team play and began to make substitutions in those moments when, as it would seem to the uninitiated, the situation did not yet require it. Papaloukas entered the game instead of Holden, and Vanterpool was soon replaced by Zakhar Pashutin. One throw was enough for the forward of our team to zero in, and on the second try he was accurate from the three-point arc.
Dynamo failed to take advantage of the weakening of CSKA on the front line due to the loss of David Andersen, who went to Australia for surgery. The blue and white perimeter players passed passes to the powerful offensive pillar Lazar Popandopulo, but he only attacked the basket himself once, and in other cases he made allowances for his partners. But under his shield, the European champion in the Greek national team was the absolute master - he cleaned up almost all the bounced balls.
The nightmare for Dynamo began in the second period, or rather, even in the 15th minute of the match. Leading quite a bit (30:25), CSKA made a breathtaking leap, ending the short period of the match with a score of 19:2. These few minutes included the mistakes of Dynamo players Kubrakov, Fotsis and Domani, two long-range hits by Langdon and another three-point bomb by Vanterpool, and the spectacular point in the army extravaganza was put by Papaloukas, who ran into the lead, hammering the ball into the ring from above. Ivkovic looked confused during this period and released Bykov and Romanov onto the court, who were actually of little use.
Dynamo's pursuit of an opponent who had gone far ahead became more intense after Ivkovic replaced Chatman with Georgian point guard Giorgi Tsintsadze at the beginning of the last period. In addition, the hosts clearly benefited from an unplanned ten-minute pause due to malfunctions of the electronic scoreboard. With the score 75:68, two minutes before the siren, Messina took a time out and emotionally explained to his players how to act so as not to give Dynamo a seemingly already won match. The last minute of the match lasted a very long time - the referees endlessly whistled fouls and awarded free throws. Players from both teams missed from the line, and CSKA ultimately retained its advantage. 19 seconds before the end of the last quarter, a small scuffle arose: Kubrakov treated Kurbanov too harshly, and the basketball players of both teams, almost in full force, began to sort things out. Luckily it didn’t come to a fight.
“I really liked the way we played in the second period,” CSKA helmsman Messina said after the match. — After the long break, it was hard for us psychologically. I’d like to make a special mention to the Russians: Pashutin Jr. played great in the opening of the match, and Kurbanov helped the team a lot in the second and last, tenth minute.” Ivkovic noted that, despite the defeat, Dynamo showed character: “In the end we tried to do our best. Alas, Chatman looked a little tired, this is reflected in the tension of the last matches in the championship and Eurocup. I gave Tsintsadze a lot of time and he was useful for us in the absence of Popovich, who is recovering from an injury. The second quarter decided everything in the match; the CSKA back line basketball players completely isolated our point guards.”
In other matches, Dynamo Moscow Region defeated Lokomotiv-Rostov - 80:66, University (Surgut) prevailed over St. Petersburg Spartak - 68:64, Ural Great in Vladivostok turned out to be stronger than the local Spartak - - 76:71. UNICS needed two overtimes to get a ticket to the Final Four of the Russian Cup at home in the game against Dynamo St. Petersburg. On the banks of the Neva, the Kazan team had previously lost - 73:74, at home they won back in regulation time - 59:58, and achieved an advantage only after two extra five minutes - 75:69. Khimki also made it into the quartet of the best teams in the National Cup, having more than confidently dealt with Novosibirsk Lokomotiv. The Moscow region club has signed a preliminary contract with powerful forward of the German national team Ademola Okulaya. The agreement will be finalized after a medical examination.
Russian Championship. Super League. Men. Leading : CSKA - 14 wins - 2 losses, UNICS, Khimki - 12-3 each, Dynamo (St. Petersburg) - 11-3, Dynamo (M) - 11-5.