Zenit lost to Maccabi Tel Aviv in a friendly match in Belgrade
Here’s a detailed report on the match against Maccabi Tel Aviv. This game marked Zenit’s first of the offseason under Aleksander Sekulic, who recently finished coaching the Slovenian national team at EuroBasket.
The scoring in this game opened with a mid-range shot by the MVP of the Kondrashin and Belov Cup, Georgy Zhbanov, who remained calm and composed. Next, it was Alex Poythress’s turn: the center slammed the ball through the hoop, while Neno Dimitrijevic missed two free throws. The Israelis quickly surged ahead, and after a three-pointer by Lonnie Walker, they led 6:7. Zenit’s starting five — Dimitrijevic, Vorontsevich, Karasev, Zhbanov and Poythress — looked mobile and coordinated. A three-pointer by the team captain seemed like it should have tied the score at 9:9, but the referees called a goaltend — 8:9. Maccabi pressed aggressively and extended their lead to 8:13. Returning to the coaching bench, Aleksander Sekulic responded with a substitution: Andrey Martiuk replaced Poythress and immediately made two free throws—10:13. Soon, Trent Frazier, Vladislav Emchenko and Levi Randolph entered the court, while the Israelis increased the pace — 10:19. Sekulic called a timeout with exactly four minutes left in the first quarter. Levi made three free throws, reducing the deficit to six points, and then Martiuk battled under the rim — 15:21. Roberson set up a play with Randolph, getting Levi under the basket for a 2+1. But the yellows continued hitting from long range — 20:26 with two minutes left in the quarter. Randolph was Zenit’s leader at this stage, scoring 12 points alone, while Walker stood out for the opponents with 15 points. In the last minute, Trent made a three-pointer, and Levi added free throws — 27:28 in favor of Maccabi. However, a buzzer-beater by the Israelis caught Zenit off guard — 27:31 by the end of the first ten minutes.
Alex started the second quarter with a powerful dunk. Roberson had a real chance to tie the score but failed to score under the rim. The Israelis continued their assault with several long-range shots — 31:42. Another timeout followed, but Maccabi did not slow down. Zenit gradually played tighter defense, managing to stop a few attacks, yet the yellows kept their pace — 37:49 with two minutes left in the first half. At 39:49, the Israelis called a timeout. Zenit’s lineup on the court was Shcherbenev, Roberson, Zhbanov, Randolph and Poythress. Stopping Andre’s attack came at the cost of his third personal foul — 39:51. Zenit responded with another mid-range shot by Levi. The first half left many questions — 41:51 in favor of Maccabi.
In the first minute of the third quarter, two rebounds by Vorontsevich saved Zenit from trouble. Karasev missed a three-pointer but corrected it with two rebounds. A couple of attacks involving Neno reduced the deficit to six points — 45:51. A foul on the Omsk native further narrowed the gap after Andrey’s free throws. Zhbanov fought fiercely against opponents, Karasev ran the court like Usain Bolt, but Maccabi maintained control — 48:54 with five and a half minutes left in the third quarter. Sunlight broke through the curtains, illuminating Zenit’s bench. The Israelis slowed down slightly, but Zenit seemed to lack the freshness of the opening minutes. At 50:63, Sekulic called another timeout. Fatigue was beginning to show for the St. Petersburg team. Perhaps if the match had started three hours later, they would have recovered better. Three minutes remained in the third quarter, and a comeback seemed unlikely. Frazier hit a three-pointer — 53:67. Levi’s three-pointer — 56:67. It seemed like a turning point, but Maccabi answered symmetrically — 56:72. Zenit’s last attack of the quarter resulted in another long-range basket by Trent. After thirty minutes, the score was 59:74 in favor of the yellows.
At the start of the fourth quarter, Poythress powered the ball into the basket but missed a free throw — 61:74. On the next attack, Alex committed his third foul under his basket. Maccabi made another long-range shot, and Poythress got his fourth foul. With the score at 63:81, Sekulic called a timeout. Seven minutes and 34 seconds remained. Randolph made a difficult shot, clearly in form tonight. Alex battled under the basket like a lion, while Roberson shot accurately from deep. Zenit did everything possible to avoid a blowout. Zhbanov scored two tough points despite constant contact from Leaf under the basket but stayed composed. At 72:88 with five minutes remaining, the Saturday match against Uralmash seemed inevitable. Reminder: had Zenit won on Friday, they would have played Partizan on Saturday… Yet the friendly against Uralmash was an excellent opportunity to test themselves in the final stage of preseason preparation. Near the end, the rim rejected Karasev’s long-range shot, and the most decorated Israeli club continued scoring steadily. 74:96 with 90 seconds left. A couple more free throws raised the question: would the EuroLeague team reach 100 points? They did. Zenit responded with a beautiful attack and prepared for the game against Uralmash. Final score — 77:102.
Zenit’s top performers today were Levi Randolph (19 points, 3 assists, 1 rebound), Alex Poythress (16 points, 7 rebounds) and Andrey Martiuk (14 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal).
