Zenit takes revenge and evens the series

The Blue-White-Sky Blues defeated Uralmash in the second game of the VTB United League quarterfinals. Dejan Radonjić's team managed to take revenge with a score of 92:64 and even the series at 1-1. Breaking down Zenit's first win of the 2025/26 playoffs.

Compared to the previous game, there were significant changes to the St. Petersburg squad. Sergey Karasev and Luka Šamanić returned to the home team's roster. Ismaël Bako, Alexander Shcherbenev, and Igor Volkhin missed the match.

Zenit's starting five: Andre Roberson, Trent Frazier, Johnny Juzang, Andrey Martiuk, Georgy Zhbanov.

The teams got off to a powerful start with high shooting efficiency. For Zenit, Martyuk scored second-chance points and threw down a dunk, while Juzang and Roberson (twice) scored from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the visitors were also dangerous from the three-point line — Timofey Gerasimov and Kirill Popov hit from deep, with Popov also converting a drive. Midway through the quarter, the advantage was in the hands of the Blue-White-Sky Blues — 13:8. By the first break, our squad managed not only to maintain the handicap but also to increase it — thanks to two-pointers from Trent and Luka, as well as three-pointers from Vlad and Johnny. The first ten minutes ended with a score of 23:16 in Zenit's favor.

Long-range shots remained the best weapon for both teams up to a certain point. For example, by the midway point of the second quarter, Uralmash had slightly cut the lead (34:30), and three-point shooting percentage was holding at 57.1% for both sides. Zenit ultimately lost this quarter by 5 points but managed to maintain their lead going into the big break. In the final seconds, Andre Roberson interrupted the opponent's possession with a steal and ran out on a fast break with Moon — the guard ultimately delivered a signature pass to the forward, and Dre slammed the ball home to the delight of the fans — 44:42 at halftime.

As before the start of the game, during the halftime break, all those present were delighted by a performance from the American rap group ONYX. The legendary duo from New York added even more drive to the evening.

The third quarter, which had been problematic for us in the first quarterfinal game, this time belonged entirely to the Blue-White-Sky Blues. The Zenit players came out of the locker room extremely fired up and immediately stunned Uralmash with an 8:0 run, forcing the opponent's coaching staff to call another timeout. But even after that, Zenit continued to press, and Andrey Martiuk extended the run to 10:0. The Blue-White-Sky Blues' scoring streak was finally broken by Anton Kardanakhishvili, who hit a three-pointer as the buzzer sounded. After such a blistering stretch by the hosts, the game calmed down a bit, the pace slowed, and there were more stoppages. However, Zenit's lead and, most importantly, their momentum remained intact: Martiuk was dunking, Frazier and Juzang were shooting from beyond the arc. Going into the final quarter, Petersburg led — 65:49.

Solid play on both ends of the court, as Dejan Radonjić had mentioned before the game, allowed the Blue-White-Sky Blues to maintain their advantage in the final ten minutes. Zenit secured a resounding victory with a score of 92:64 and evened the series — 1-1.

The best players for the Blue-White-Sky Blues today were Andre Roberson (16 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks), Xavier Moon (16 points, 5 assists, 1 steal, 1 block), and Trent Frazier (16 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds).

The quarterfinal series now moves to Yekaterinburg. The third game against Uralmash will take place on May 2 at the DIVS arena. Tip-off is at 17:00 St. Petersburg time.