Zenit defeats Uralmash in Yekaterinburg and advances to the VTB United League semifinals

The main team from St. Petersburg defeated Uralmash on the road in the fourth game of the VTB United League quarterfinals — 61:78. Thanks to this victory, Zenit closed the series with a score of 3-1 and advanced to the semifinals of the 2025/26 season. Here are the details of today's match in our report.

The Blue-White-Sky Blues started Game 4 with a lineup of Roberson, Frazier, Juzang, Martiuk, and Zhbanov. Sergey Karasev, Ismaël Bako, and Igor Volkhin missed the match.

After a slight stumble at the start, the first points eventually came. The home team scored through smart plays by Tyrell Nelson, Octavius Ellis, and Garrett Nevels. For Zenit, Johnny Juzang was accurate from beyond the arc, Andre Roberson and Andrey Martiuk converted drives, and Trent Frazier ran a fast break — 6:9 in favor of the Blue-White-Sky Blues five minutes in. At one point, the home team went on a 6:0 run, hitting two three-pointers in a row, prompting an immediate reaction from Dejan Radonjić's coaching staff — a timeout. After the pause, Zenit responded with their own long-range shots: Vorontsevich and Frazier improved their stats, and then Uralmash called a timeout. The first quarter ended in Zenit's favor — 14:19.

Zenit started the next period with a 13:2 run, which temporarily knocked the hosts out of the game. But Anton Yudin's team was not ready to end the season on that note. Gradually, the Yekaterinburg side managed to cut the deficit back to 5 points and finished the quarter tied — 37:42.

The third quarter was perhaps the most intense of the day. The level of competition rose to its peak, and Uralmash took the lead for the first time since the start of the game. The lead changed hands several times during this stretch. The Blue-White-Sky Blues managed to tip the scales back in their favor thanks to productive plays by Zhbanov, Frazier, and Šamanić — 55:60 heading into the final quarter.

In the last ten minutes, Zenit's defense choked off the opponent and ultimately shut down the home team. Uralmash scored only 6 points in the fourth quarter, while Zenit returned to a double-digit lead. Dejan Radonjić's team secured a road victory with a score of 61:78 and advanced to the next round of the playoffs — 3-1, series closed.

The top scorer for the St. Petersburg side today was Trent Frazier — 15 points, 1 rebound, and 1 steal for the captain.

In the semifinals of the 2025/26 VTB United League, Zenit will face UNICS. The series will begin in Kazan on May 11 and 13. The full schedule of the series is available in a special section on the club's website.