The captain of Lokomotiv Kuban shared his thoughts on the victory over Zenit (84:76), which brought us bronze medals (3-2 series), and on the season as a whole.
- What can you say about the game?
- It was a tough win, and I'm glad we got it, especially considering we came back from 0-2 down in the series. It was a very close game, but we stayed together until the very end and didn't let them get close. It's really important for me to win medals with Lokomotiv, as in my previous seasons here we finished in 4th place. It's great to finally take a step up.
- What can you say at the end of the season?
- It was a long season. It seems longer than I've ever been here. I've been here since August, but I think it was all worth it. I know we want to win first place, but I have tried to get bronze for three years since I've been here, so this is my first time getting it, so third time's the charm. I'm happy about that. And now I'm just excited to get home and see my family.
- How was it to be a captain?
- It was fun. I feel like I've always been a captain – in high school, college. Even if I wasn't the captain as a label, I feel like I was the captain because of my personality. And I appreciate the guys following my lead, listening to me, the fans showing me love. So I appreciate all that. And I'm glad we were able to get a win for the fans, too.
- What can you say about the chemistry in the team now?
- I think once Tomo[vic] got here, he brought fire into us about being physical. I think we just became more physical and started believing in each other. Everybody was held accountable from me to Pasha [Ryabkov]. The coach brought that to us and then we were a team during wins or losses, ups and downs. I don't know what next year gonna look like but I'm glad we went out winning so we can go home and enjoy the summer.
- What can you say to the fans that were with the team for the whole season?
- Oh, I appreciate them always, they always show love. I think we got the best fans in the league competing with Parma. They helped us today, too. So we appreciate them, we love them and we'll see them on Sunday, so we're gonna have fun and celebrate this win.
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