Kuban Advance With Victory At Dynamo

Michael Wilkinson had a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds in the win

Lokomotiv Kuban won for the fourth time in the EuroChallenge and sealed a place in the Last 16 with a 78-67 triumph at Enterprise BC Dynamo.

Losers in double-overtime in their opening game at Antwerp and then narrow one-point winners over Dynamo, Lokomotiv Kuban now look as if they could be one of the best teams in the competition.

Mike Wilkinson had 17 points and 10 rebounds for Lokomotiv (4-1).

The hero of the first game when he sank a perfect nine of nine shots at the charity stripe, including two free-throws in the waning seconds, Wilkinson this time made just three of six but it didn't cost his side.

Tuesday's contest was knotted at 11-11 when Wilkinson passed to Alexey Surovtsev and he buried a jump shot inside the arc.

Alando Tucker and Wilkinson then each split a pair of free-throws for a four-point Lokomotiv lead.

Alexey Zhukanenko's three-ball reduced the arrears to 20-18 early in the second quarter but Lokomotiv kept their noses in front as Wilkinson replied with a jumper and then Maxim Grigoryev struck with a three-ball.

Dynamo (1-4) stayed within striking distance until midway through the last quarter when four straight points extended the Lokomotiv lead to 68-55.

Kestutis Kemzura's men claimed the win that assured their progression and eliminated Dynamo from contention for a place in the next round.

Nikita Shabalkin had 21 points, Evgeny Voronov 19 and Zhukanenko 17 in defeat.

Quotes Enterprise BC Dynamo vs. Lokomotiv Kuban

Dynamo Head Coach Sergey Bazarevich:
"The whole difference is that Lokomotiv scored 13 second-chance points, but we - only 2. Dynamo players didn't feel sorry for themselves. They defended 24 seconds and finally lost rebounds. I'm not happy that our players didn't follow our instructions. We have prepared very thoroughly for this game, but unfortunately we couldn't show it during the game."

Dynamo Forward Nikita Shabalkin:
"It was a very important game for us. The victory in the game gave us a good chance to qualify to the next round, that's why our lose today was quite disappointing. We started badly from the very beginning. We made mistakes and began to catch up. We almost succeeded in it, but it was not enough. We allowed the rival to impose its game and as a result we lost."

Lokomotiv Kuban Head Coach Kestutis Kemzura:
"It was a very important game for both teams. We were fighting for the first place in our group, Dynamo was fighting for survival. As we expected the game was tough. Due to good defense we managed to lead. But our offence was not so organized. Dynamo pressed us and we couldn't' reach much. We controlled the game in the second half, but Dynamo started catching up. In this moment Mike Wilkinson helped the team a lot and we began to lead.  

Kuban Guard Alexey Surovtsev:
"We were focused to win because it gave us the first place in our group. Today we showed a team game and could control it."