From the very beginning, Kalev unexpectedly took the lead. Loko regularly penetrated to the paint, was fouled by the opponent, but low efficiency of free throws (45%) didn’t let Krasnodar catch up with the Estonian team. Kalev limited hustle in the paint and shot from downtown – 5/9 triples. At the end of the quarter, Loko made the opponent fail to net several three-pointers (0/4). The Estonians got a 14-point advantage in the mid of period, but Loko cut the gap to 6 points – 21:27.
In the second quarter, Wright (8 points), Johnson (6), and Khvostov (5) joined the rush toward leadership but it wasn’t enough. Kalev stopped shooting from downtown and got 10 points from the paint which was empty without injured Fall. They added 8 points from the free throw line. However, Wright made buzzer bitter and the score after the first half was 48:51.
In the third quarter, Loko netted 5/8 triples, Kalev – 4/8. Kulagin who got 14 points in the first half added 6 more. Wright successfully attempted two 3Ps. Krasnodar took the lead in the game for the first time in 30 minutes after Ponitka’s free throws.
The guests started the fourth quarter with two triples but soon they got 5 team fouls. Moreover, five players of the Estonian team had 4 personal fouls each. But Loko failed to use the advantage: the team hustled, committed 4 turnovers, and missed the opportunity to break the situation – 80:85 – it’s the first Loko’s home defeat in the VTB United League.
Dmitry Kulagin was the top scorer of Loko in the game – 22 points, 4 assists, and 4 rebounds. Dorell Wright got 18 points. Khvostov and Johnson – 10 points each.
Lokomotiv Kuban plays its next game at home against Arka Gdynia in EuroCup on November 7th.
