Levi Randolph: "We knew it was very important to set the tempo early"

Blue-White-Sky Blues guard Levi Randolph gave an interview to Zenit TV following the away game in the VTB United League against Saratov’s Avtodor. The St. Petersburg team secured a 62:75 victory, with the American becoming the top scorer on the court — 18 points and 5 rebounds.

— Congratulations on the win. Zenit once again played with a shortened rotation but still controlled the game confidently. How were you able to compensate for the absence of several players today?

— Today we had a very good game. You know, we played a team where we knew they would give a lot of energy. We knew they would fight. We had a lot of guys who stepped up and we were able to play together. It was a game of runs where the score went up and down. But we really enjoyed playing together and bringing the energy.

— You took control early and built a solid lead by the second quarter. How important was it to set the tempo from the opening minutes against Avtodor?

— We knew it was very important to set the tempo early. We knew that we needed to start the game well, play aggressive, set the tone. We were able to come out early, get a good lead and really start things on the defensive end.

— In the first half, you scored a lot of steals, fast breaks, and strong ball movement. Was that a key point of emphasis, or did the team simply find its rhythm?

— Yeah, we were able to score a lot of points early in transition. But I think it just was a testament of our defense. You know, we followed the scouting report. We tried to do the things that coach asked us to do. You know, he always pushes us to get better and be better and be aggressive. And I think we did that early to start the game today.

— In the fourth quarter, Avtodor went on a 14:0 run. How did that happen?

— In the fourth quarter, after the door, they went on a run. You know, the basketball is a game of runs, though. It happens. There's going to be ups and downs in the game. It's just how well can you withstand those runs. You know, we have to do a better job of not letting up, continuing to play hard, continuing to finish the game. But it was, you know, it was their run, that was their run for the game. And we were able to hold on and get the win.

— How would you assess Pasha Zemskiy’s performance? He looked confident throughout the game and played aggressively on offense.

— Pasha played really well today. You know, he was part of that 14:0 run where he was able to get, make some shots, get some putbacks, things like that, rebounds, and really spark them. We know what he can do. We've seen him all season. We saw him in practice. So we knew what type of player he was. And, you know, he did a good job today.

— We've started 2026 with two straight wins. What’s important to maintain in order to keep moving forward at this pace?

— Yeah, 2026 has started well, we've gotten two wins. We just have to continue to get better every day. We can't win a championship right now, but the things we can do is continue to just try to get better every day, you know, 1% each day. You know, if we just continue to stack really good days, and hopefully at the end of the season we'll have a great season. So game by game, day by day, we just got to continue to get better. 2026 has started well, we just have to continue to, you know, through the ups and the downs. There's going to be adversity, but we have to just stick together, trust the process, and continue to build, continue to get better. Just like today, we had a lot of guys out, so we're, you know, continuously just trying to put the team together and keep everybody healthy so that we can be ready on playoff start.

— There were several Zenit fans spotted in the stands in Saratov tonight. What would you like to say to them?

— I want to thank the Zenit fans for being here for us today. You know, I've seen quite a few Zenit fans the last two games on the road. We appreciate them being there and supporting us. We can hear them during the game, so we just want them to continue to come, continue to support. And we'll try to continue to give them all of our energy. So I just want to say thank you and we appreciate it.