The second team of the blue-whites will host Khimki
Zenit-2 is preparing to face Khimki from the Moscow region in the 12th round of the Fonbet Super League. This match will conclude the St. Petersburg team’s extended home series. Oliver Popovic’s squad approaches the game against the yellow-blues while holding the top spot in the league standings.
Last season’s finalist arrives in St. Petersburg amidst a slight crisis. Khimki has failed to win in their last three regular-season Super League games. Following the international break, Khimki suffered a home loss to Tambov (81:89), then to CSKA-2 (78:92), and narrowly lost on the road to Dynamo Grozny this past weekend (66:65) falling just short of victory.
However, Andrey Maltsev's team remains in contention in the Russian Cup. In the first leg of the Round of 16, where the yellow-blues once again faced Tambov, Khimki secured an emphatic away win with a score of 64:86.
At the moment, the visitors occupy sixth place in the standings and are the top passing team in the league, averaging 20 assists per game.
Among the opposing team’s leaders is newcomer Viktor Zaryazhko, who was named the most valuable player of the 2023/24 regular season while playing for Temp-SUMZ. In the Super League the guard is averaging 10.7 points, 5.1 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game. Blue-whites fans remember Zaryazhko well from last year’s bronze medal series, where he stood out as captain.
This will be the 8th encounter between these teams in history, with Khimki having won all previous matchups.
Zenit-2 head coach Oliver Popovic on the game against Khimki:
In my opinion, we are hosting one of the best teams in the league. They are very experienced and individually strong. Their current standing in the table does not reflect their true quality. We are expecting a very tough game.
The game will take place on December 10 at the Zenit Basketball Academy (Severnaya Road, 12). The match will start at 18:00 St. Petersburg time. Admission for all fans is free. A live broadcast of the game will be available on the Russian Basketball Federation’s website.
