“Apart from our team, few people believed that it was possible to eliminate CSKA” – Lokomotiv-Kuban guard Shcherbenev

Club Leader Lokomotiv Kuban Alexander Chcherbenev told RG that after a series with an opponent such as CSKA his team has nothing to fear.

On Monday, Lokomotiv Kuban beat CSKA in extra time in Game 7 of the VTB United League semi-final series with a score of 103:100 (25:22, 14:25, 21:21, 25: 17, 6:15 p.m.) and became the tournament’s first runner-up.

— Incredible emotions, very happy. I think that apart from our team, few people believed that it was possible. That a seventh game is possible in principle and that we will win it. Proved to everyone, to themselves. Before the final. After an opponent like CSKA, there is nothing to fear.

– When did you yourself believe that you could beat CSKA?

Before the start of this series. The coaches told us: if we don’t believe, then there is nothing to do here. We will fly away 0-4, and that’s it. And then we won a game, the second and we already felt we could. That there are also people in CSKA and we can beat them. Moreover, we have already achieved a lot and we have taken this series.

– Key moments of the series, the seventh game?

– I don’t know, this is probably the third game in which we won, losing “minus 17”. And in this match I would say that everything was decided in overtime. We hit a lot, placed the ball wisely. We used fouls, calmly threw free kicks. And they didn’t hit three-pointers. Luck was on our side.

– In extra time, you constantly found yourself on the penalty line and you never missed it. What were you thinking at that time?

– I thought that in last year’s semi-final series with CSKA, I launched five “projects” and I had to finish this, there was a debt to pay off. I can say that it is incredibly difficult to defend the whole game against Kasper Weir and Alexey Shved and then leave some more strength for the attack. Very happy to have succeeded in my throws.

– In the playoffs, Lokomotiv Kuban seemed to have changed. What happened?

– I must say a big thank you to Nizhny. They “prepared” us perfectly for the semi-finals. No one plays as hard as Nizhny Novgorod. Every game we played with them was a fight, a fight. After Nizhny, I wouldn’t say it was easy against CSKA, but we were definitely ready for this series.

– Aren’t you afraid that after the victory against CSKA, there will not be enough emotions for the final?

– This is the first time I have participated in the United League final. I hope our coaches and medical staff will do everything possible to ensure that we reach the final in top form and show our best game.

The second runner-up will be determined in a UNICS – Zenit pair, where the series score is always equal – 3-3. The decisive match of the series will take place on May 2 in Kazan.

Watch live broadcasts of VTB United League matches on and other holding channels, as well as on sportbox.ru and matchtv.ru websites.

russian newspaper