That day happened to be the hottest one in Krasnodar this year, and it’s not just the +35 C on the thermometers – the atmosphere in the Basket Hall, where the red-greens fought the Permians for reaching the semifinals, was even hotter.
Before the game, the fans greeted Kirill Yelatontsev, who was recognized as the best young player in the league. Alas, the center had to miss the game – we wish the 21-year-old talent quick recovery!
Meanwhile, game No. 2 started. It differed significantly from the first: both teams were playing cautiously, relying on defense, and the scoreboard showed zeros for more than a minute.
The situation was broken by Andrey Martyuk, who a couple of moments earlier prevented Isaiah Reese from scoring. PARMA responded without hesitation – with a 3-pointer. In the next possession of the Krasnodar team, Martyuk scored again, and after an unsuccessful attempt by the visitors, Dmitry Uzinsky scored a three – 7:3.
In defence, the southerners acted tenaciously and selflessly, rushing for every ball: DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell robbed BJ Johnson while lying on the floor, and from his pass Maurice Ndour scored from above – 9:3.
However, soon the Perm team came within one shot (9:7), but then Vladislav Yemchenko came into play, turning Okaro White’s interception into a well-aimed three. White worked exemplarily on both posts: having blocked Johnson’s shot, #15 rushed to the visiting hoop at maximum speed, and, hanging on it after the dunk, blinded the stands with his widest smile – 16:7. “Plus 9” remaineded on the scoreboard at the end of the starting quarter (21:12).
The second quarter opened with a long-range shot from Karvel Anderson – the sniper did not disappoint the crowd. Then Ndour, who forced the opponent to foul, made both free throws in; then Anton Kvitkovskikh was successful from a distance. A couple of minutes later, Anton did not allow Ruslan Abdulbasirov to cross the center line, and Akoon-Purcell, with a quickdraw, as if in slow motion, hammered in from above – boom!
And when there were 44.4 seconds left until the big break, the same DeVaughn, soaring over the Basket Hall parquet, put an alley-top from Jaylen Barford directly into the basket – 44 points for Loko, a magic of numbers!
Akoon-Purcell did not cease to amaze the audience: 5 seconds before the end of the first half, he intercepted the ball from Vladislav Perevalov near the opponent’s three-point line and dunked into the locker room at the siren – 46:31.
The surprises in the third quarter were only pleasant for Krasnodar fans. Lots of spectacular finishes – one could even lose count. Therefore, Barford’s stunning assist to White for a long throw; Karvel’s two 3-pointers in a row that made the stands explode with roar; numbers of interceptions with subsequent fast breaks; Maurice Ndour’s blocked shot are\ definitely worth to be remembered for a long time .
Loko’s advantage kept increasing, and the teams started the final period with the score 76:46. But even with such a solid advantage, emotions did not subside for a second. Towards the end of this bright game, Kirill Temirov and Alexander Shcherbenev appeared on the court – and added to the heat, so everyone in the Krasnodar roster had a score. The final siren was drowned out by the joyful shouts of the red and green stands – 97:60 on the scoreboard and 2-0 in the series! Also, “+37+ is the biggest margin for Loko to ever defeat PARMA.
The next game will take place in Perm on April 28, 2 PM MSK. Go, team!