UNICS Kazan head coach Velimir Perasovic shared his thoughts after his team’s hard-fought 107–104 overtime victory over Zenit St. Petersburg in the first game of the VTB United League semifinal playoff series, praising the high level of play from both sides.
**UNICS Kazan 107–104 OT – Zenit St. Petersburg**
**Scorers:**
UNICS: Pierre – 27, Reynolds – 23, D. Kulagin – 18, Lee – 15, Bingham – 14, Shved – 6, M. Kulagin – 2, Lopatin – 2, Belenitsky, Manford, Zakharov, Abdulbasirov
Zenit: Samanic – 28, Zhbanov – 23, Fraser – 10, Martyuk – 9, Moon – 9, Vorontsevich – 8, Duzeng – 7, Roberson – 5, Uzinsky – 5, Karasev, Yemchenko, Zemsky
“Both teams played at a very high level—one of the best I’ve seen in my years in Kazan,” Perasovic said, as quoted on the VTB United League’s official website. “We committed only eight turnovers today, but Zenit once again outrebounded us. We managed to contain their key players, but left too much space for others—Zhbanov and Samanic combined for half of their team’s points. On Kulagin’s game-saving shot, we lost the advantage and let them take the lead, but that happens in the playoffs.”
He added, “Pierre had a great game. Zenit focused their defense on Reynolds, so Pierre capitalized on open looks. In overtime, when everyone is tired and makes more mistakes, we were able to push through and finish strong.”