VTB: Khimky and Avtodor win

The tenth round of the 2014/2015 VTB United League season tipped off on Saturday with two games during the evening, with two road wins recorded. Khimky continued its dazzling VTB United League form and maintained pressure at the top of the standings with a win over Astana, while Avtodor put itself back into the chasing pack with a narrow victory over Krasny Oktyabr Volgograd.

BC Astana vs. Khimky Moscow Region, 88-93
Khimky Moscow Region collected a ninth win of the competition and had too much for Khazakstani hosts BC Astana, emerging with an 88-93 road win. A decent showing from the Khimky bench saw the visitors score 31 points courtesy of relief players, while the roster was also in decent touch in the paint, taking 48 points in the danger zone. Coach Rimas Kurtinaitis may feel the Moscow club got lucky at times as his charges were wasteful from three point range. The Khimky players attempted 29 shots from beyond the arc and only made 8.

Tyrese Rice was typically formidable for the visitors with 30 points, But J’Covan Brown was a dangerous attacking presence for Astana with 25 points and 7 assists for the home teams’ cause.

Krasny Oktyabr Volgograd vs. Avtodor Saratov, 82-83
It has been a stop/start VTB United League season for Avtodor, but it was definitely a go night on Saturday as the club downed compatriots Krasny Oktyabr on the road. However, it was a close fought thing, but a big effort (especially from Kyrylo Fesenko with the second best rebound effort in VTB history with 18 boards) saw the visitors escape with a last second basket and the win.

Despite the close final score, the Saratov contingent had the advantage on the scoreboard for large parts of the game and even led by eleven points from a 13 point run. However, the hosts spurred by the ever impressive Randy Culpepper kept coming back, thanks a lot to the Americans’ potent scoring. It proved to be an up and down game with 19 lead changes, many of which came in an exciting final act.