Zenit U21 broke the winning streak
The youth team from Saint Petersburg concluded a two-day showdown against PARMA-M with today's match. Both games were held at the Basketball Academy on October 17 and 18.
The first game was completely dominated by the hosts. The Zenit U21 players took the initiative from the opening tip-off and secured their fifth consecutive victory of the new season with a score of 72:53. The top performers in this game were Ivan Vasiliev (19 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 assist and 1 steal) and Timur Ivanov (14 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists).
The roles were reversed the next day. Now Zenit U21 was already lagging behind: having lost the first quarter with a score of 17:26, Roman Knyazev's wards gathered for the final segment and took the lead with a minimal advantage. However, the final ten minutes still went to the guests — 70:76 and the first defeat of St. Petersburg in the current draw of the VTB United Youth League. Dmitry Filippov (19 points + 1 rebound + 1 interception) and Timofey Komissarov (17 points + 9 rebounds + 5 steals + 3 assists + 2 blocked shots) became the most productive players in the blue-whites team.
Roman Knyazev, head coach of Zenit U21:
We had two completely different games in terms of emotion. In the first, we fully dominated and controlled the flow. We were ready for any scenario the opponent presented. We played aggressively on defense and gave no space to our opponents. In the second game, we lacked the emotional intensity and handed over the initiative from the start. I'm grateful to the players for coming back into the game multiple times and giving us a chance to win. But when you make so many mistakes, it's hard to expect more. We'll take note of our shortcomings and improve our game. Credit to the opponent, they adjusted their plan well and caused us a lot of problems.
Dmitry Chikishev, guard of Zenit U21:
We started the game poorly, didn't follow the coach's instructions, which allowed our opponents to score easy, open shots. Later, we couldn't handle the opponent's press, and as a result, we lost the game.
Zenit U21 will play their next matches again at the Basketball Academy on October 21 and 22. The games against Yekaterinburg's Uralmash-2 will start at 14:00. Entry for all fans is free.
