By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
After a poor display and a tough loss in Euroleague against Fenerbahce, UNICS returned to its VTB League obligations where they faced Enisey and barely came out on top with 83-80 on the scoreboard after overtime.
Despite a solid start (13-4), Unics was actually playing from behind most of the game. Darral Willis and Casper Ware were the force that pushed Enisey to a 69-61 lead with under four minutes left to play.
However, Lorenzo Brown scored the next four points to spark an 8-0 run by Unics with the help of Mario Hezonja and John Brown. That tied the game with two minutes left and neither team managed to score until the end of regulation.
The same actors dominated the overtime as well, with Lorenzo Brown banking in eight points including two well-timed three-pointers. Ware was outstanding on the opposing side but it wasn’t enough, as Hezonja sealed the deal from the free-throw line.
Hezonja finished the game with 28 points while Lorenzo Brown followed with 21. John Brown and Dmitrii Uzinskii added 12 points each.
The interesting thing about Hezonja’s performance was that he got the 28-point mark despite shooting 1-9 from deep, although the nine fouls he drew and the 9-10 free throws he made helped out.
For Enisey, Ware and Willis scored 19 each with Rion Brown adding 14 points. Willis also grabbed nine rebounds.
Meanwhile, Zenit Saint Petersburg scored in triple-digits, routing the opposing Lokomotiv Kuban 106-79.
Igor Volkhin led the way with 21 points followed by Jordan Loyd and Jordan Mickey who helped out with 12 each, as did Mateusz Ponitka and Denis Zakharov.
For Lokomotiv, Errick McCollum scored 18 in addition to Jonathan Motley’s 17 points. Stanton Kidd and Stanislav Ilnitskiy had 15 each.