By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Thanks to another show by Alexey Shved (28 points, 6 assists)) and the key presence of Earl Rowland (19 points), Khimki Moscow defeated Zenit St. Petersburg 90 – 84 on the road to win the semifinal series of the VTB United League.
But the biggest prize for Khimki, that came back from a 0-2 deficit in the series, comes with a spot in the 2017/2018 EuroLeague. Since CSKA Moscow has an A-license, the VTB finalist automatically punches a EuroLeague ticket, thus Khimki now celebrates its return to the competition after a one-year break.
Kyle Landry was the top scorer for Zenit with 15 points plus 6 rebounds and 5 assists while Sergey Karasev had 14 points and 6 assists.
Poor shot selection and decision-making forced Zenit to trail in the vast majority of the game, albeit from a short distance. Nevertheless the hosts could’ve won it if Karasev didn’t miss a wide open 3-pointer with the score 78 – 79 and then lose the ball to Earl Rowland in the next play that resulted to a transition slam by the American guard of Khimki. It was the beginning of the end for Zenit.
With the score 78 – 82 and 41 seconds left, Toolson also failed to connect with the basket and a pair of free throws by Robbie Hummel “wrote” the 78 – 84. Toolson made it a one-possession game with three free throws but Humell and then Shved’s free throws were perfect from the line, trimming Zenit’s chances.
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