From the very start of Game 5, Zenit tried to remind everyone that the home team had been the only victor in this series so far. André Roberson was scoring well from the paint, but Patrick Miller had an answer for every one of his baskets. For a while, 3-pointers from Kirill Temirov and Miller kept Loko close. But after getting 10 points, things stalled for our team: we were struggling hard in both scoring and rebounding. With the score 10:20 in Zenit’s favor, Tomislav Tomović called a timeout.
A minute-long pause noticeably invigorated Lokomotiv: Miller scored 2+1 after a steal by Anton Kvitkovskikh, then Kvitkovskikh himself brought the team 4 points in a row with the help of a block and a steal by Vince Hunter, and right at the buzzer for the first break, Jeremiah Martin scored another 2 points, 19:20.
The 2nd quarter had barely begun when Lokomotiv was already ahead, with Ivan Samoylenko hitting a 3-pointer. Zenit then began scoring again, but this time our team responded more frequently and accurately: Martin scored on his trademark isolations, Ishchenko sank both long-range shots and free throws. With the score 32:28 in our favor, it was time for Rostislav Vergun to call a timeout. But Lokomotiv had already gotten on fire: Miller recorded another 2+1, Martin continued to capitalize on iso shots, Alen Hadzibegovic scored from mid-range and finished an alley-oop, and on another play, he made a great assist to Temirov. By the big break, Lokomotiv was leading 45:40.
After the side switch, Zenit scored points on their first two attacks, but Krasnodar responded each time with their own: Samoylenko made it from under the basket, Miller performed a dashing reverse layup. Kvitkovskikh blocked Trent Frazier‘s 3-pointer, and that began a stretch of turnovers and misses. Zenit twice got within 2 points, but Miller and Hunter pulled Lokomotiv back both times. The game was tense: numerous fouls, including technicals, began to flow. Zenit twice found itself within two points, but the end of the quarter still favored our team: Hadzibegovic from the mid-range and Mike Moore from the perimeter made it 63:57.
By this point, the St. Petersburg team had made only 1 of 17 three-pointers. But from the opening seconds of the 4th quarter, Andrei Vorontsevich began to correct that, scoring from the very corner of the court. Returning to defense, Vorontsevich blocked Miller‘s shot, but the ball remained with Lokomotiv, and just before the end of the possession, Martin scored from the arc. Hunter intercepted the ball, and Hadzibegovic increased the lead by another 2 points (also just before the end of the 24-second possession), 68:60. Then Roberson had a powerful run: a rebound, a block to Hadzibegovic, and a foul by Ishchenko, which turned out to be our guard’s fifth. Hadzibegovic and Xavier Moon traded two-pointers, and after Vorontsevich‘s interception, Frazier was unable to score, thanks to Temirov‘s strong defense. And Lokomotiv scored again just before the possession buzzer rang–this time Hunter did it, 72:64 in the 35th minute.
Moon scored three points, and on the next possession, Samoylenko made a great assist to Hunter, 74:67. Andrei Martyuk made a strong run, scoring Zenit’s next 6 points (luckily for us, accompanied by 2 from Miller). After a Lokomotiv timeout, Martin found a way to the basket and scored an easy lay-up. Roberson missed his shot, but Hunter made his one–80:73 with 2.21 on the clock.
On Zenit’s next attack, Hunter picked up his 5th foul and, following Ishchenko, ended the game early. Martin got blocked by Dmitry Uzinsky, Temirov was called for a technical foul for flopping, and with a minute and a half left in the game, it was 80:76. Moore missed a 3-pointer, but Temirov grabbed the rebound, and Miller increased our lead to “+6”. Then Lokomotiv’s tight defense forced Moon to step out of bounds with the ball, Moore was fouled, sank both free throws, Roberson missed a 3-pointer, and Lokomotiv’s victory was assured.
Lokomotiv Kuban turned the tide of the third-place series in glorious fashion and claimed our second-ever bronze medal in the VTB United League. The team’s meeting with fans is scheduled for 2:00 PM on June 14. Admission is free. See you there!