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Russian Cup Final Four: April 23-24, 2007 |
CSKA Moscow is the Russian Cup winner! CSKA won its third consecutive Russian Cup title by overpowering Unics Kazan 74-59 in the title game in Vidnoe, on the outskirts of the Russian capital on Tuesday. Matjaz Smodis led the way for the defending Euroleague champs with 21 points, while Aleksey Savrasenko posted a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds. A three-pointer by Ksystof Lavrinovic gave Unics an early 8-11 lead, but Smodis and Andersen fueled a 12-3 run that put CSKA in charge, 20-14, after 10 minutes. A triple by Andersen made it a 12-point game, but Sergei Chikalkin and Jarod Stevenson brought Unics within 37-32 at halftime. CSKA broke the game open after the break, as Smodis and Savrasenko helped their team to a 59-43 advantage. Unics did not recover and CSKA sealed the win long before the final buzzer, allowing their fans to celebrate yet another Russian Cup title. The efficient Smodis made 6-of-9 two-point ahots and was 9-of-10 from the free-throw line, while Savrasenko converted 6-of-7 shots. David Andersen added 15 points for CSKA. Jarod Stevenson and Jerry McCullough each had 11 points for Unics, while Ksystof Lavrinovic added 10.
CSKA reached the final by topping cross-town rival Dynamo Moscow 56-75 on Monday, while Kazan downed Dynamo Moscow region 88-63. Trajan Langdon led CSKA with 16 points, Andersen added 13, Smodis 12 and J.R. Holden 11. Lazaros Papadopoulos had 15 points and 8 rebounds for Dynamo, but none of his teammates scored in double digits. A three-pointer by Dmitry Domani and a basket by Antonis Fotsis gave Dynamo its only lead of the game, 19-17, late in the first quarter. Free throws by Anton Ponkrashov ignited a 2-11 run, which Theo Papaloukas capped with a three-point play to give CSKA a 27-36 lead late in the second quarter. CSKA improved its defense after the break, limiting Dynamo to just 10 points in the third quarter. Meanwhile, a triple by Langdon and back-to-back baskets by Zakhar Pashutin and Andersen made it a 15-point game after 30 minutes. CSKA increased the margin to 48-70 and cruised to a well-deserved win. Afterwards, Unics downed Dynamo Moscow region as Chikalkin scored 20 points. Ksystof Lavrinovic added 19 and Jamal McCullough had 13 for Unics, which led 51-33 at halftime, boosted its margin to 78-47 and never looked back.
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Monday, April 23, 2007
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Euroleague.net |
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