We smash Pari NN and return to the 2nd place

Main team news

06.12.2023

UNICS Kazan won a crushing victory in the Volga derby over Pari Nizhny Novgorod with a score of 91:61 and returned to second place in the VTB United League table. Velimir Perasovic's team crushed the guests in the first half, achieving a +31 advantage by the half time (47:16) and easily maintaining a solid handicap by the final siren. Five basketball players of our team scored double-digit points at once. Jalen REYNOLDS became the most productive member of UNICS, who was just one rebound short of a double-double (17 + 9). Neno DIMITRIJEVIC brought 16 more points with 5 assists, 3 steals and 3 rebounds to the white and green. Erick GREEN has 16 points, 4 steals and 3 assists. Vyacheslav Zaitcev and Marcos KNIGHT scored 23 points for two.

UNICS (Kazan) – «Pari Nizhny Novgorod» – 91:61 (22:7, 25:9, 18:22, 26:23).
UNICS: Reynolds (17 + 9 rebounds), Dimitrijevic (16 + 5 assists + 3 steals), Green (16+ 4 steals +3 assists), Zaitcev (12 + 3 rebounds), Knight (11 + 2 rebounds).
«Pari Nizhny Novgorod»: Novakovic (20 + 6 rebounds), Gafurov (10), Apic (8 + 4 rebounds) Gankevich (7), Ivlev (7).

Kazan will play their next match on December 11 in the capital of Kazakhstan against Astana.

POST-MATCH COMMENTS:

Velimir PERASOVIC, BC UNICS head coach:

«We understood that Nizhny Novgorod had missed a large number of players in Kazan, so the match turned out easier for us than it could have. However, even with such team, our opponents have recently been close to defeating Zenit and CSKA.

Today, we kept our concentration from the very beginning, got off to a good start and predetermined the result of the match in our favor in the first half. I'm happy with the attitude of my guys. It is important that we control the rebound for the second game in a row. If we stick to this plan, I think we can succeed in the future».

Vyacheslav ZAITCEV, BC UNICS guard:

«Our team did a lot of things today. After the heavy defeat in Krasnodar, it was important for us to show a reaction. Therefore, from the first minutes we began to defend aggressively, hit our shots and by the half time we had achieved an impressive advantage in the score. Despite a solid handicap, we did not allow ourselves to relax in the second half and brought the match to a major victory».

Mark TIKHONENKO, BC UNICS forward:

«We are glad to win today. In my opinion, we played a perfect match. We prepared well for the game and fulfilled all the tasks set by the coach: to work out in defense, control selection, make fewer mistakes. Of course, we were angry at ourselves for missing the victory in Krasnodar. I think we need to forget about that defeat and move on. We know exactly what we need to improve and we will work on it».

Zoran LUKIC, BC Pari Nizhny Novgorod head coach:

«Congratulations to UNICS on the victory. Colleague Perasovic showed from the first seconds how he was going to win – with aggression and pressure in defense on our boys. This confrontation showed their real capabilities. You can fantasize about the player's abilities, but in reality they are still modest.

The champion showed today what an active ball game is - 22:7 and 25:9 after the first and second quarters. They completely destroyed our attack. Look at how many losses some of our players have made. They couldn't even cross the center line. UNICS took advantage of the problems in our rotation, but that's no excuse. As a coach, I would have done the same thing.

In the second half, my colleague reduced his aggression. This is his decision. Therefore, we spent 20 minutes almost on equal terms.

Just before the match, we realized that Strebkov would not be able to go on the floor again. I'm not saying that the result would have been better, but from the point of view of reading the game it would have been more interesting. Vanya is not a high-speed player, but with intelligence and experience».