Russia – Superleague 1 Round 6: Novosybirsk loses their first game against Spartak-Prim.

FedorKlyuchnikov After 6 rounds played we can already see who rules in the Superleague 1 and who belongs to weaker ones. The most surprising game was the first loss of Novosybirsk (5-1) at the home court on Sunday night. Hosts were defeated by sixth ranked Spartak-Prim. (3-2) 81-73. It ended at the same time the five-game winning streak of Novosybirsk. 25 personal fouls committed by Novosybirsk helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. Guard Fedor Klyuchnikov (192-90) scored 29 points and 7 rebounds to lead the charge for the winners and Aleksandr Gankevich (201-95) chipped in 18 points and 6 rebounds during the contest. Spartak-Prim.’s coach Milos Pavicevic used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. The best for the losing side was guard Sergey Tokarev (189-85) with 21 points and 9 assists. Spartak-Prim. maintains sixth position with 3-2 record. Novosybirsk at the other side still keeps top place with one game lost. They share the position with Irkut. Spartak-Prim. are looking forward to face higher ranked Ural Ekaterinburg (#4) at home in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Novosybirsk will play against Khimky-Podmoskoye and is hoping to win this game. Very important is a home loss of third ranked Ural Ekaterinburg (4-1) against fifth ranked Samara-SGEU (4-2) on Saturday night. Host Ural Ekaterinburg was defeated by Samara-SGEU in a tough game in Ekaterinburg 68-76. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Ural Ekaterinburg. Point guard Alexander Korchagin (188-88, agency: Stanislav Ryzhov) notched 10 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists to lead the effort and Sergey Toropov supported him with 12 points and 9 rebounds. Even 16 points and 4 assists by point guard Maxim Tkachenko (185-92, agency: Stanislav Ryzhov) did not help to save the game for Ural Ekaterinburg. Both coaches used bench players and allowed the starting five to rest. Samara-SGEU maintains fifth position with 4-2 record. Ural Ekaterinburg at the other side keeps the third place with one game lost. They share the position with Sakhalin. Samara-SGEU will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game. Ural Ekaterinburg will play on the road against Spartak-Prim. in Vladivostok and hopes to get back on the winning track. Khimky-Podmoskoye has finally registered their first victory this season after four consecutive losses. They used home court advantage to defeat Urartu Yerevan (0-5) 68-64 on Friday. The best player for the winners was Alexander Matveev who scored 24 points and 8 rebounds. Khimky-Podmoskoye’s coach Evgeni Kisurin allowed to play the deep bench players in such tough game. At the other side the best for losing team was Todd O’Brien who recorded a double-double by scoring 14 points and 16 rebounds. Khimky-Podmoskoye (1-4) left bottom position moving up to eleventh place, which they share with MBA Moscow. It was Urartu Yerevan’s fifth loss in a row. Newly promoted team still closes the standings with five games lost. Khimky-Podmoskoye will meet at home league’s second-placed Novosybirsk in the next round and they do not belong to the favorites in that game. Urartu Yerevan will play against the league’s leader Irkut Irkutsk (#1) where they are definitely not considered as a favorite in this game either. Kupol-Rodniki has finally registered their first victory this season after three consecutive losses. They used home court advantage to defeat MBA Moscow (1-4) 71-48. It was a good game for Andrey Petukhov who led his team to a victory with 17 points and 5 rebounds. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Kupol-Rodniki (1-3) left bottom position moving up to tenth place. MBA Moscow at the other side dropped to the eleventh position with four games lost. Kupol-Rodniki’s next round opponent will be higher ranked Ryazan (#9) on the road and it may be quite challenging game. MBA Moscow will play against Universitet-Yugra in Surgut and hope to win that game. In the last game of round 6 Ryazan lost to TEMP-SUMZ on the opponent’s court 76-84. Novosybirsk – Spartak-Prim. 73-81The most surprising game …

continue reading in source www.eurobasket.com