Astana on their way to VTB United League playoffs
As part of the VTB United League, Astana played host to the Ukrainian club Budivelnyk. In the last seconds of the first period, the Astana player Rawle Marshall led the Kazakh team ahead with a three-point throw making the home team lead 22:21. Ahead of the big break, the host side went 14 points clear of the Ukrainian team thanks to its foreign players Rawle Marshall and Jerry Johnson. Later on, the score gap became even more compelling, but the Kyiv team Budivelnyk managed to narrow the gap to 5 points. Marshall and Johnson played well again to prevent the visiting side from scoring more goals. As a result, Johnson scored five three-pointers and helped his team gain a 91:85 home victory. Matteo Bonichiolli’s team is continuing to compete for the spot in the playoffs. To get through, the team has to win the two remaining matches. On February 24, Astana will be playing at home against the Russian club, Nizhny Novgorod.
Rustam Yargaliyev, Captain, Astana Basketball Team
«We were dominating the match and we were doing everything our coach had been telling us to do. We watched the matches featuring Budivelnyk and the whole team came out on the floor with a good mood and those, who did not play, were supporting the team. I think we won it thanks to our desire and a good mood.»