By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
CSKA Moscow defeated Zenit Saint-Petersburg, 78-73, on the road to claim the 1-0 lead in the VTB United League Playoffs Semifinals best-of-five series on Monday.
Tornike Shengelia hit a team-high 17 points in Game 1. Johannes Voigtmann threw in 13 points, ten rebounds, and four assists. On the other end, Kevin Pangos with 23 points and Tarik Black with 16 points were not enough.
The guests built double-digit distance late in the third quarter and did not let go of the lead until securing the W. Up 1-0, the team coached by Dimitris Itoudis will stay in Saint-Petersburg for Game 2 planned to be played on Wednesday.
The other semifinals series pitting Lokomotiv Kuban against UNICS Kazan will start tomorrow, Tuesday.