Loko vs CSKA: a chance to get on top

On December 5th at 8 PM, a match that deserves the title "super" will begin at Basket Hall: the team with the longest winning streak will host the reigning champion. Or, to put it straight, CSKA will be visiting Lokomotiv Kuban.

Lokomotiv has gradually climbed into the top 3 teams in the league in points scored by opposing teams.

Vsevolod Ishchenko is 4th in the league in blocks, which is impressive considering he’s a backcourt player.

In terms of team statistics, CSKA is strong in everything except assists (18.9 – 6th in the league), blocks (2.2 – 9th), and free throws (75.5% – 7th).

Lokomotiv Kuban is the worst in the tournament in free throw accuracy (71.2%).

In terms of individual statistics, the only player in the VTB United League Top 10 for CSKA is the newly crowned November MVP Melo Trimble: he is 8th in points scored (16.6, slightly ьщку than our captain Patrick Miller, who has 16.4), and also 5th in steals (1.6).

Both teams currently have 10 wins, but Lokomotiv has one more loss, so we’re currently lower in the standings. A win would propel us to the top, at least until tomorrow, when UNICS, another top-3 team, plays in Saratov.

Exactly the same situation (a win over CSKA would take Loko to first place, but UNICS still has a game to play) occurred on November 1st, before our previous game against the blue-reds. What happened next isn’t something people in Krasnodar like to remember – the 64:104 defeat was a record-breaking loss for our team in the VTB United League.

I wouldn't focus on the big defeat in the last game against CSKA because, first and foremost, we need to look at ourselves now. On Friday, the result will depend on many factors, even small details. Our opponent is the reigning champion, a very experienced team that has been playing together for quite a while; victories against such teams are hard to get. But we're playing at home in front of our fans, and we want to win. I've said it many times before, and I'll keep saying it again, how happy I am with the amount of people who come out to support us, no matter who we're playing. I want to thank these people and wish them be happy when the game on Friday ends.

Anton Yudin, the head coach of Lokomotiv Kuban PBC

Yudin describes Mike Moore‘s and B.J. Johnson‘s condition as good. These players, along with Kassius Robertson, who’ve been to North America playing for Team Canada, will be included in today’s roster if, according to the coach, “everything goes well.”

Patrick Miller, who three weeks ago was advised by Lokomotiv’s medical staff to skip the trip to Yekaterinburg and Samara to get some rest, is also ready to play.

I think it was enough rest. I don't like missing games and I don't like not playing basketball. So I'm looking forward to just having fun. We're a full team now, so I don't think we had a team like this all season. Everybody's energy is up now. We just got a new team basically. It's a test to see how we are and how we're going to shape out to be towards the end of the season when we're playing in the playoffs. We need to beat CSKA, that's all the motivation I need. And playing against AC [Antonius Cleveland] is good for me too. I want to beat them, you know. So I don't need extra motivation. We need all the energy we can get from our fans. It's our first game back off the break, so I think we're all excited and we're all looking forward to it. So I hope our home arena can help us get the win.

Patrick Miller, the guard at Lokomotiv Kuban PBC

At the time of publishing this preview, there were still 132 tickets left for sale for today’s game. If you haven’t bought one yet, hurry – this kind of a big show you is much better being witnessed in person.

Go, Loko!