Zenit-2 advanced to the semifinals of the Fonbet Super League
Starting five for Zenit-2: Pavel Zemskiy, Ivan Prokopenko, Ilyas Abdul, Daniil Aksenov and Egor Ryzhov.
From the very beginning, the visitors imposed their game plan — and it worked. Early in the match, Zenit-2 struggled with execution, while Novosibirsk seized the initiative and held a comfortable 3–6 point lead. White and Makeev were especially effective, consistently scoring from close range. Despite a strong stretch by Elkhan Akhmedov, who scored both on a drive and from beyond the arc, Zenit-2 couldn’t cut the deficit, and the first quarter ended 15:20 in favor of the Siberian team.
The second quarter was the lowest-scoring one. A slew of errors, fouls, and missed shots significantly slowed the overall pace. Novosibirsk, although struggling, continued to add points and pushed the lead to "+12", while the St. Petersburg team couldn’t make a field goal until midway through the quarter. Only Prokopenko’s free throws, a hook shot from Akhmedov, and a fast break finished by Zemskiy helped reduce the gap slightly. After that, Zenit-2 scored exclusively from the free-throw line before halftime. Overall, both teams had a tough time from three-point range throughout the match. The teams went into the break with the score at 26:33.
After the break, Zenit-2 went on a scoring run and got back in the game: Dulkay hit from beyond the arc, and Ryzhov and Prokopenko were confident in the paint. As the deficit narrowed to just one point, the game became slower and more physical. In the final minute of the third quarter, Novosibirsk captain Dmitry Makeev hit a key three-pointer, but Ryzhov responded with a buzzer-beater from mid-range. Heading into the final quarter, the scoreboard read 42:44.
The final quarter started poorly for the hosts. Accurate shots from Semenyuk and Makeev once again put the visitors ahead by "+8". But then Zenit-2 suddenly flipped the game. The three-pointers that hadn’t been falling all night came at just the right time: a long-range shot from Zemskiy and two straight hits by Aksenov put Zenit-2 in the lead. In a tense finale full of tactical fouls and scrappy plays for every ball, Novosibirsk couldn't recover. Final score — 66:60 and a win for St. Petersburg.
The top performers for Zenit-2 were Pavel Zemskiy (16 points + 10 rebounds + 2 blocks + 1 steal), Egor Ryzhov (13 points + 8 rebounds + 2 assists + 1 steal), Daniil Aksenov (12 points + 6 rebounds + 4 assists + 1 steal) and Elkhan Akhmedov (11 points + 2 rebounds).
In the Fonbet Super League semifinals, Oliver Popovic’s team will face Temp-SUMZ. The first two games of the series will take place on April 16 and 18 in Revda. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 16:00 St. Petersburg time.
