The return of "lost" Americans, record-breaking "Bumblebees," and Goverla's second triumph: 10 highlights from the Super League's game week.
Dnipro: One Step Away from Their First Loss of the Season
The reigning champions and leaders of the current season hosted one of two bubbles. It seemed that the Dnipro team, traditionally calm and skilled, would secure victorious results. However, things were not that straightforward.
In the very first match of the bubble, Vladimir Koval's team played against the Cherkasy Mavpy, who were struggling with rotation issues. A 25-point deficit midway through the third quarter for the Cherkasy team suggested an easy finish for the hosts.
5Nevertheless, Nagorny's team put up a very competitive fight against their opponents, and in the final possession, they could have snatched a sensational victory, handing Dnipro their first loss of the season. However, Agafonov, Marchenko, and Co. failed to convert the decisive possession. Thus, it ended in a 71:70 victory for Dnipro. This time, they got lucky...
Records of Kyiv-Basket
The Kyiv team solidified their position in second place on the standings with convincing victories over Lutsk (79:66) and Rivne (99:73). Furthermore, Dmitry Zabirchenko's squad significantly outperformed both opponents. Team and individual records confirm this.
6In particular, in the match against Rivne, the "bees" scored 99 points, setting a record for scoring in this season's Superleague. Additionally, the capital team established a seasonal record for three-pointers in the same game, making 17 long-range shots out of 25 attempts, with Kyiv-Basket captain Burenko hitting 8 "threes".
Interestingly, last season Rivne convincingly defeated the Kyiv team. Moreover, it was Pereverziya's team that eliminated the capital's players in last year's Superleague semifinals. For now, the seasonal series and tournament standings favor the yellow-blacks.
"Mavpy" Lack Personnel
After the aforementioned match against Dnipro, in which the Cherkasy team came very close to a fantastic comeback and a sensational victory, the Cherkasy Mavpy, with limited options, lost to Zaporizhzhia. Following the injury of Nazar Kholod, who is out for the remainder of the season, Nagorny's team is experiencing a serious personnel shortage.
7The young coach admitted that during training, the team even sought help from former "mavpy" player Nikita Ruslov, as the roster was insufficient for full-fledged practices. After their first loss of the season to Zaporizhzhia, captain Agafonov even labeled his team the weakest in the league due to significant rotation issues. It is evident that Cherkasy needs to strengthen their squad, yet in the current realities, achieving this effectively is not that simple.
Second Victory and First Legionnaire of Hoverla
Despite a rocky start to the season and the injury of captain and leader Startsev, the headstrong "hoverlyans" did not wave the white flag. Before their home bubble, the Ivano-Frankivsk team welcomed back American Reid, who previously played for Cherkasy Mavpy and Kryvbas.
Notably, Reid became the first legionnaire of Hoverla since the "bears" returned to the Superleague. While the American is not yet in optimal condition, he could become a real X-factor for this roster. Ultimately, Reid was one of the best and highest-scoring players for Murzin's team in the victorious match against Old Lutsk and the lost game against Rivne.
81:1 for Rivne Accompanied by Golovchik's Record
The reigning silver medalists of the Superleague recorded one win and one loss in their tally this game week. Initially, Pereverziya's team defeated Prykarpattia-Hoverla by a margin of 9 points, but in the central bubble match, they lost without options to Kyiv-Basket (99:73).
It is worth noting the individual performance of Rivne player Dmytro Golovchik. In the match against Hoverla, the guard recorded 7 steals, setting a season record. By the way, his teammate Fuller had just one steal less.
9"Steel" Kryvbas of Vorona
After last year's tough season, the Kryvyi Rih team is pleasantly surprising this year. The arrival of Alexander Vorona as head coach has benefited Kryvbas, which can now challenge any team.
However, Kryvyi Rih still lacks consistency. Evidence of this is their lackluster performance and a predictable loss in one of the previous matches against Old Lutsk. With the absence of the injured Khant, they sometimes struggle with size under the boards. Nevertheless, in this bubble, Vorona's team confidently defeated Zaporizhzhia, and the match against Dnipro was interrupted due to an air raid alert. Currently, the Kryvyi Rih team has eight wins and the same number of losses.
0Zaporizhzhia: Bakh Returned, Skira Left the Team
Like Rivne, Zaporizhzhia also recorded a 1/1 in their wins-losses this game week. Initially, Plekhanov's team lost to Kryvbas, but later defeated Cherkasy Mavpy.
However, this is not all the news related to this club. In particular, the white-greens announced the termination of cooperation with center Sergey Skira. This season, the big man played only 9 matches and mostly lost competition to Nikitin, Buts, and even young Dmytrenko.
It is also worth noting the roster addition: after an interesting story involving agency games, American Bakh returned to Zaporizhzhia. The guard is expected to assist Khokhonyk and Velichko in building attacks.
Two Losses for Lutsk, Who Are Undergoing a Rebuild
The team that certainly cannot take anything positive from this game week is Old Lutsk-University. The team from Volyn suffered two defeats in Ivano-Frankivsk. While the loss to Kyiv-Basket was somewhat predictable, the first defeat of the season to Hoverla was clearly not in the plans of the coaches and club management.
1Following the departures of Jackson and Ridley, the Lutsk team is restructuring their game and, like most Superleague teams, is feeling a personnel shortage. However, to be fair, the situation isn't as dire as it is for the "Mavpy". Nevertheless, the injury to Musiyenko adds to the headaches for Lutsk. How the team will respond to the aforementioned challenges remains to be seen!
Bondarchuk Has Returned!
The basketball community has not been an exception to the general trends: a number of players and coaches are also defending Ukraine against the aggressor. Among them is Dnipro forward Roman Bondarchuk, who helped secure the championship last year as part of Koval's team.
During the offseason, Roman, like his namesake Novikov, joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Recently, Dnipro added Roman to their roster for the season, and in the home bubble, Bondarchuk made his first appearance in this year's Superleague, playing eight minutes against Cherkasy Mavpy. Given the serious injuries to Koldomasov and Tarasenko, this is a significant boost.
Bublyk Both Scores and Volunteers
To conclude this collection on a positive note, we would like to highlight the compassionate initiative of the Superleague's top scorer, Mykhailo Bublyk. The Kryvbas player announced a fundraising campaign to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine. To raise more funds, Bublyk is raffling off jerseys from Superleague clubs. He promises to donate the proceeds to the 5th OVMBr. A great initiative!