Zenit defeats UNICS on the home court
Zenit's starting five featured team captain Sergey Karasev, guard Trent Frazier, forwards Dwayne Bacon and Andrey Vorontsevich, and center Vince Hunter.
Both teams struggled to score in their opening possessions, but by the end of the first minute, Vorontsevich broke the deadlock with a three-pointer. On Zenit's next possession, Bacon drove to the basket and extended the home team's lead. Kazan responded quickly — Dmitry Kulagin hit his free throws, and Akoon-Purcell followed up with a close-range shot after a quick steal. As UNICS cut the deficit to a single point, the game slowed down and turned into a physical battle. Midway through the quarter, Zenit briefly lost the lead, but big men Hunter and White helped restore their advantage. As usual, the first ten minutes ended with a spectacular display from Alexey Shved — first hitting a three-pointer, then draining a buzzer-beater from mid-range. Zenit led 21:16 at the end of the first period.
The second quarter began with strong play from Georgy Zhbanov, who made a free throw and exchanged three-pointers with Akoon-Purcell. His accuracy helped Zenit maintain their lead, but the offense started to struggle, with points coming mainly from Frazier’s free throws. By the middle of the period, UNICS cut the deficit to a single possession, forcing head coach Xavi Pascual to call his first timeout. However, after the break, Zenit couldn't regain their offensive rhythm, while UNICS kept increasing their advantage. By halftime, the visitors had taken control, leading 33:43.
The second half started at a blistering pace. Zenit, determined to bounce back from their poor finish to the previous period, aggressively attacked UNICS's defense. However, the visitors kept up the tempo, consistently scoring both from the field and the free-throw line. Pascual’s team faced a tough challenge — erasing a fluctuating 8- to 11-point deficit as quickly as possible. The comeback started with two three-pointers from Georgy Zhbanov, followed by an and-one play from Alexey Shved and a long-range shot from Dwayne Bacon, cutting the difference to just two points. This forced UNICS head coach Velimir Perasovic to call a timeout. But Zenit was unstoppable — two more threes from Bacon, plus long-range shots from Shved and White, put the home team back in front. Heading into the final quarter, the scoreboard read 68:64 in Zenit's favor.
The intensity reached its peak in the final ten minutes. Both teams traded baskets in a high-paced, physical battle. UNICS made a small push early in the quarter, but Zenit maintained a steady 5- to 7-point lead, confidently closing in on victory. The final score — 92:83.
The standout performers for Zenit were Dwayne Bacon (30 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal) and Alexey Shved (15 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 1 block).
After this game, Zenit will take a short break, except for Andrey Vorontsevich and Georgy Zhbanov, who will participate in the VTB United League All-Star Game this Sunday, February 16.
Zenit's next regular-season game will take place after the international break. The team will face Astana on March 1 at home at CSC Arena, with tip-off at 14:00 St. Petersburg time. Tickets are already available at tickets.bc-zenit.com.
