Intro
Unlike Game 1, Khimki didn’t get off to a fast start. Instead, the two teams traded baskets early, putting up 33 total points in the first five minutes. The game was energetic and fast-paced — everyone on the court pushed hard on offense and on defense, urged on by a big crowd. The visitors held the early lead, 19-14.

Khimki got within one point near the end of the first quarter, but Milos Teodosic dropped a 3-pointer with a few seconds left on the clock to send CSKA into the break, leading 27-23. The Serbian point guard picked up where he had left off to start the second, pouring in seven more points to stake CSKA to a 13-point advantage, 36-23. Game 1 star Zoran Planinic tried to answer back for Khimki, but he didn’t have quite the same success tonight, and Khimki entered halftime trailing by eight points, 42-34.

K.C Rivers stepped up for Khimki in the second half. His three 3-pointers early in the third quarter gave Rimas Kurtinaitis’s men new life. The home team even took lead briefly, 52-51, on a Vitaliy Fridzon 3-pointer with 2:57 to play in the period. CSKA’s second string, however, returned the lead to close the quarter and set up a dramatic final 10 minutes.

Turning Point
CSKA ran into serious trouble in the fourth quarter. Teodosic went down to injury and while the lead briefly hovered at nine points, Vitaliy Fridzon helped Khimki storm back in the final five minutes. His two free throws with 1:46 to play cut the deficit to two points, 74-72. Able to shut CSKA down on offense the rest of the way, Khimki simply couldn’t find the basket. Sergey Monya missed a 3-pointer, Paul Davis had the ball stripped in the paint and Fridzon’s last-gasp drive was blocked by Andrey Vorontsevich. CSKA wins Game 2 on the road, 74-72.

Star of the Game
Milos Teodosic. The Serbian point guard had a direct impact on the outcome in today’s game. His string of four consecutive field goals to end the first quarter and open the second gave CSKA a commanding lead. His return to the court in the third quarter, meanwhile, stopped Khimki’s comeback.

Unfortunately, Teodosic was injured during the game and had to watch the end of the game from the bench.

Stat of the Game
5 – number of points scored by CSKA in the final six and a half minutes of the game. Thanks to sharp defense, their inability to score didn’t prevent the Army Men from coming out on top.

Quotes
Khimki head coach Rimas Kurtinaitis:
— I’d like to congratulate CSKA on the win. We were close, but we made several mistakes at the decisive moment. It’s no tragedy – it’s difficult to beat CSKA twice in a row. I think that the most interesting games are still to come. 1-1 is a decent result, though we’d like to be ahead at home, 2-0. It’s too bad that we need to learn from our mistakes. What happened, happened. We need to prepare for the away games. I don’t have any problems with my players – they really want to win.

CSKA head coach Ettore Messina:
— I’d like to thank my players for winning a very important game today. We lost Teodosic, however, today, who will be out the rest of the season with a calf injury. Alexander Kaun is also having some trouble with his back. He’ll probably miss the next game.

Top Performers
Khimki: Vitaliy Fridzon – 16 points; Paul Davis – 15 points; Zoran Planinic – 13 points, five assists; K.C. Rivers – 13 points, four assists.

CSKA: Vladimir Micov – 16 points, four assists; Milos Teodosic – 15 points; Andrey Vorontsevich – 10 points, five rebounds.

To Be Continued…
Game 3 in the Khimki – CSKA series will be held on Tuesday, May 28 in Moscow. The game tips off at 7:00 pm local time and will be broadcast live on Rossiya 2 and VTB-League.com