Zenit lost to Bursaspor on the Turkish Riviera tournament

After the win over Turk Telekom our team was facing another Turkish side Bursaspor. This is a fast an aggressive team that is being built by Serbian coach Dusan Alimpijevic.

The game started really intense – first points were gotten by Zubkov and Karasev. But Bursaspor reacted, scored a few 3-pointers and got the lead. The opponent won the first quarter and was leading in the second one, and this is when the tension went too high for coach Xavi Pascual. He got ejected for two technical fouls, and Inigo Zorzano took over. Zenit responded immediately, but was still losing by the halftime.

The third quarter was too emotional, too. Zenit was getting closer and closer to the opponents, and in the end of the period there appeared a fight. As a result, Sergey Karasev was ejected, along with the interim head coach Inigo Zorzano. Adamantios Panagiotopolous took over then, and Zenit stepped into the last quarter with a 3-point deficit.

Last quarter was very intense, and very tight, too. Teams were even with just 3 minutes to go, but unfortunately Zenit missed a few potentially crucial shots. Bursaspor was a little bit more lucky in the end and won the game. The final score – 79:81.

The next game at the Turkish Riviera is on September, 11th, vs Euroleague champs Anadolu Efes.