From the first minutes, the opponents clung to each other so tightly that it was hard to imagine that at there end they would score 200 points between them.
With the score 5:5, Kirill Yelatontsev and Kirill Temirov entered the game. Both namesakes immediately added fire to Lokomotiv’s game: Yelatontsev shut down Ismaёl Bako, who had been on fire, made a dunk, then a great assist to Temirov, who by the end of the quarter scored 8 points, which allowed us to lead 19:18.
UNICS quickly scored 5 points at the beginning of the 2nd quarter. At that moment, Antonius Cleveland’s time began: he scored first a free throw, then a three-pointer. And Tahjere McCall tied it, 25:25.
Marcos Knight’s rocket-propelled runs under the basket brought Kazan 4 points in a row. Loko responded with long shots: first by Isaiah Whaley, later by Cleveland, 31:29. Patrick Miller not only made a great isolation, but also put Knight on three fouls. In a short period, Whaley scored two 3-pointers; Marcus Keene also scored from beyond the arc, after which Yelatontsev made a spectacular block to DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell, Temirov stole the ball from Keene, and Cleveland gave Anton Kvitkovskikh a top assist – 43:37, which by the big break had turned into 43:39.
The third quarter started with 2+1 by Akoon-Purcell; soon Whaley made a steal and scored 2 points, Kvitkovskikh blocked Bako’s lay-up, Miller scored from the mid-range, and Whaley from afar (4th out of 4 attempts!). Yelatontsev put the ball into the basket after his own miss – 52:42 and a timeout for Velimir Perasović.
After the resumption of the game, Jalen Reynolds committed an offensive foul, and Cleveland scored a 3-pointer, establishing the largest advantage of the game for Lokomotiv at 13 points.
Knight quickly scored 4 points again, but after our timeout, Temirov waited for the ball in the corner – another 3-pointer is in! Yelatontsev got his 4th foul, so Whaley moved to the center position. It looked fine: in the next episode Isaiah stole the ball from Reynolds, which led to Miller’s 2 points at the very end of possession.
In the brawl between Kvitkovskikh and Reynolds, the Kazan player received a technical foul, and Anton received an unsportsmanlike one, which was his fifth. UNICS quickly reduced the gap to two possessions, and the quarter ended with the score 64:59 in favor of Loko.
The game resumed – and once again Knight scored 4 points in a row, 64:63 and our timeout. Only after Keene put UNICS ahead from the perimeter, Loko was finally able to score their first points in the 4th quarter. But it was only 1 point, since Whaley missed his second attempt from the free throw line.
The host’s attack continued to go bad, and Whaley’s point remained the only one for Loko for more than half of the period. Luckily, the opponent’s attack these minutes was bad either, so when Cleveland finally scored a field goal, it became 67:68 in favor of UNICS. Bako’s 2 points were answered by one free throw by Yelatontsev, then Dmitry Kulagin from afar and Reynolds from under the ring set the score to 68:75 with 2.33 left to play. Both team got stuck in tense defense, and it was only 1 point scored in the next almost 2 minutes – 69:75 with 37 seconds on the clock.
In UNICS’ possession, Keene threw twice from the arc – both times missed, but 20 seconds were wasted. Reynolds got the 5th foul on Cleveland, who scored both free throws, 71:75.
Instant foul on Keene who missed the first attempt, made the second. Cleveland picked up the ball, barely stepping over the center line, made a throw – and the ball fell off the backboard into the hoop! 74:76 with 7.6 left!
The ball is with Keene, he is fouled again. The player scores the first, but misses the second throw, leaving Lokomotiv with at least a ghost of a chance. And Cleveland uses this chance! Exactly by the same scheme: throws from a dribble from 8-9 meters – and again into the hoop from the backboard! All 3,500 spectators in the Basket Hall jump to their feet – the game is saved, overtime awaits us!
The extra five minutes start hard for us: Yelatontsev is out with his 5th foul, and Knight hits both free throws. But then McCall scores 2+1, and we are ahead again – 80:79. For the next 2 minutes, both teams score only from the free throw line, with Knight and McCall out with fifth fouls.
With the score at 82:82, Lokomotiv has two successful fast attacks in a row: Temirov and Miller set the margin at two possessions. It holds for a while, when suddenly sniper inspiration descends on Keene: the smallest player in the league scores two 3-pointers in 30 seconds – maybe not as incredible as Cleveland, but also impressive. 88:90 and 53 seconds to play.
Whaley also decides to throw from beyond the arc, but this time misses. Luckily for us, Keene misses too – and in a counterattack, Whaley decides to throw from under the ring, 90:90.
The last play remains with UNICS, and at the buzzer, Akoon-Purcell has an open shot from the corner – no goal. The extra time #2 is ahead – last time this happened in the playoffs 4 years ago, in the semi-finals between CSKA and Zenit.
Due to Miller’s shot, Loko takes the lead, 93:92, but this turns out to be the last success for the the hosts this evening: Keene plays isolation after isolation and scores 7 points in a row. Our attempts to come back become more and more desperate and thoughtless, so when Andrey Lopatin scores a 3-pointer, it is 93:102 with 40 seconds left. Miller still manages to score 2+1, but UNICS breaks all attempts of our pressure and takes their bronze.
Thanks for the season, team! Lokomotiv Kuban has become the main supplier of spectacular stories this season. If it sounds too daring to you, then make your Top 5 best games of the season and count how many times each team gets into your personal rating.
Thanks for our fans! This year, people started talking about Lokofamily as a community that truly understands and loves basketball. Those who attended our games could feel on their skin and eardrums how exactly the fans’ warm support helps the team.
We weren’t able to take a step up this season. But systemic development is underway, and this will definitely bear fruit. Our students, as promised, continue to get big minutes – even in the most important games of the season. Our fan base is growing. We have the foundation to achieve truly great victories. And in the fall, we will once again set off on a journey to achieve a dream.
