Zenit vs Uralmash. Game 1 preview
Zenit
Last week, Igor Volkhin and Pavel Zemskiy returned to the Petersburg roster after playing part of the 2025/26 season with Saratov's Avtodor. Both players have already played their first match since returning, taking the court in the game against CSKA — the final round of the regular season.
Another piece of good news awaited Zenit players today after the pre-game practice. Alex Poythress has returned to the team, and this surprise delighted everyone! The center continues his recovery from injury and will support the team throughout the playoffs from the sidelines. The club will release an interview with Alex soon.
Zenit finished the regular season in third place with 28 wins in 40 games. But that's now in the past: in the playoffs, everything starts from scratch!
Opponent
Only CSKA finished the regular season better than Uralmash, ultimately taking first place. Four straight wins — including over UNICS and Zenit — allowed Anton Yudin's team to overtake MBA-MAI down the stretch and end up in 6th place overall.
Over the course of the season, our teams have already met six times across two tournaments. Uralmash came out on top twice. Following their coaching change in January, opponent has clearly picked up momentum and is in excellent form. The visitors' consistent scoring leader is Garrett Nevels, who averages 14.8 points per game.
We're preparing for tough, hard-fought games — the first two matches will take place on Petersburg's home court. To advance to the next round, the Blue-White-Sky Blues need three wins. Let's go, Zenit!
Head-to-head
This marks the second time in history that Zenit and Uralmash have met in the VTB League quarterfinals. Two years ago, the Petersburg team took the series 3-2 in the fifth game. This time, of course, we'd like to avoid such risks. The overall history between the teams in the tournament stands at 15 games — with an 11-4 record in Zenit's favor.
Direct speech
Comment from Zenit head coach Dejan Radonjić ahead of the quarterfinal series:
This is a beginning of playoff. In front of us is quite a good opponent — Uralmash. Our focus is on the first game. They are in great shape right now. We need to play a really, really good game. We need to be enough aggressive, to be enough focused, put a lot of energy on the court defensively. We need to read the game offensively and, as I said, against a really good team like they are we need to be ready to play, to do a lot of good things all 40 minutes.
Who. Where. When.
Opponent: Uralmash
Location: CSC Arena, St. Petersburg
Date: April 26, 13:00 (local time)
Broadcast: Match TV, VTB United League website, VK Video
Tickets available on the club’s website
