The last season’s runner-ups feel confident this year too. The team from Volga banks won 10 times in 10 games, besides they made it to the Euroleague Top 16 on Friday and did it without their best scorer Taylor Rochestie.
The Army Men are also short-handed. Victor Khryapa is still recovering after surgery, Milos Teodosic practices individually. Alexey Zozulin who had knee surgery went to Nizhny with his teammates but just to participate in the next episode of the Dream Team, joint project of CSKA and Rostelecom. Still it is expected that Pavel Korobkov, who missed two previous games, will help the team. Forward Mikhail Maleyko represents the junior team.
“We play against the team which has momentum,” Dimitris Itoudis, CSKA head coach said. “They are winning big recently both at home and on road, they kicked UNICS out of Euroleague, they qualified for the Top 16 in their first season. Nizhny is a team of fighters and they are leading VTB League with no losses. So we expect a difficult game and we know we have to fight hard to deserve the win.”
Past matchups
Win-loss record: 6-2,
03.01.2011. BEKO PBL: N.Novgorod – CSKA: 60-95 (+35)
22.01.2011. BEKO PBL: CSKA – N.Novgorod: 85-53 (+35)
13.04.2011. BEKO PBL: N.Novgorod – CSKA: 94-89 ÎÒ (-5)
06.09.2011. BEKO PBL: N.Novgorod – CSKA: 62-79 (+17)
01.04.2011. BEKO PBL: CSKA – N.Novgorod: 97-53 (+44)
02.12.2012. VTB United League. CSKA – N.Novgorod: 83-60 (+23)
03.03.2013. VTB United League. N.Novgorod – CSKA: 70-68 (-2)
09.06.2014. VTB United League. Finals. N.Novgorod – CSKA: 54-65 (+11)
10.06.2014. VTB United League. Finals. N.Novgorod – CSKA: 59-86 (+27)
13.06.2014. VTB United League. Finals. CSKA – N.Novgorod: 82-66 (+16)
Short dossier
Nizhny Novgorod
Founded: 2000
Colors: white, black
Homecourt: Labor Unions Palace of Sports (5,000)
President: Dmitry Svatkovsky
Head coach: Ainars Bagatskis
Website: www.nn-basket.ru
Accomplishments: VTB United League runner-ups (2014), Russian Championship runner-up (2014), Superleague B champion (2010), Russian Cup finalists (2011)
