Zenit-2 will host Novosibirsk in the first match of the season
The farm team of the St. Petersburg club will kick off the 2024/25 season with a home game against Novosibirsk tomorrow. In the previous Super League campaign, Zenit -2 reached the playoffs of the tournament for the first time, where they played a series for the 3rd place.
During the off-season, the team had some changes: several players were promoted from the Basketball Academy, experienced player Daniil Aksenov joined the squad and forward Artem Antipov went on loan to Nizhny Novgorod to gain experience in the VTB United League. With a new coaching staff led by Oliver Popovic, our players are prepared to showcase their best in the upcoming Super League season.
Pre-season preparation for the blue-whites took place mainly in St. Petersburg. Starting in August, the team played several friendly games at the Basketball Academy. Zenit-2 faced off against Tambov (63:59), PARMA-M (88:53), BGTU Voenmekh (104:66), and Temp-SUMZ (66:82). The pre-season culminated at the Alexander Petrenko Cup in Khimki, where Zenit-2 earned silver, only losing one match to the host team.
Novosibirsk also revamped its roster this summer. Several key players left, replaced by notable additions like Alexey Vzdykhalkin, Alexander Semenyuk, Alexey Babushkin, American guard Curtis White and a few other players with Super League experience. The Siberian team had an intense pre-season, finishing with a home tournament and games against Kupol-Rodniki (66:78), Barnaul (72:64) and Temp-SUMZ (64:66).
The blue-whites have faced Novosibirsk four times, but have won only once. St. Petersburg fans will surely remember that away game, where Zenit-2 claimed victory in the third overtime with a score of 105:100.
The head coach of the team Oliver Popovic gave a commentary ahead of the start of the season:
We are hosting a very solid and experienced team, certainly one of the most ambitious teams this season. Physically, we have to step up and try to play at an adult level, especially on defense. I invite our fans to come out and support our guys.
The game will take place on October 8 at the Basketball Academy (Severnaya Road, 12). The match starts at 18:00, with free entry for all fans. The game will be streamed live on the Russian Basketball Federation website.
