Alexander Shcherbenev: "Every player took two steps forward and fought hard"

Blue-White-Sky Blues guard Alexander Shcherbenev shared his thoughts with Zenit TV after the team’s narrow loss to CSKA Moscow (84:85). The game turned out to be his most productive performance for Zenit — 21 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal.

— Sasha, it seemed like the victory was already in our hands. What are your first impressions?

— It’s tough to lose like that at the end, especially considering the lineup we played with. But we didn’t just play — we fought. I can say that we stood up for each other. I’m proud of the team — the way we looked overall, the way we battled — and I think we truly deserved the win. Unfortunately, sometimes luck just isn’t on your side. But let’s save our luck for the final.

— After the stumble in Perm, it was clear that CSKA would come out with a strong mindset. What was Zenit’s game plan today?

— Yes, we knew they had lost their previous game, but we had also suffered a big defeat at home against UNICS. So regardless of what happened in Yekaterinburg, we wanted to show our fans that we’re a real team — that we can and must win. We did everything possible for that today, but unfortunately, it just wasn’t quite enough.

— Zenit was short-handed today. Along with Sergey Karasev, Neno Dimitrijevic and Trent Frazier were also out. How were the backcourt roles distributed?

— We just played for ourselves and for the guys who couldn’t be out there. Every player took two steps forward and fought hard. Thankfully, a lot of it worked. Of course, we’ll review the game — there were still mistakes — but overall it was great to see the team play like that. And again, we really did deserve the win today.

— You spent 29 minutes on the court. How are you feeling physically?

— Tired, of course, but more than anything — just emotionally upset, because it really felt like the win was in our hands. Unfortunately, these things happen, and such losses are the most painful. But at least we played our kind of basketball, our game, as a real team. It was a proud and enjoyable experience to play in this group. I think the guys will recover soon, and we’ll only get better. We’ll keep pushing upward — toward victories.

— You scored 21 points tonight. When did you feel that you could take over the game?

— Probably after I hit my third three-pointer — that’s when I really started to feel it. And, of course, the fans — you could hear them all game, they pushed us forward. Huge thanks to everyone who came today. You were truly our sixth man, and we can’t wait to see you at the next games.