Budivelnyk Kyiv became the first team to qualify for the 2023 playoffs as the Kyivites posted a 84-76 win over Kalev/Cramo on Thursday, January 5, at the TalTech Spordihoone in Tallinn, Estonia.
Players of the game
All Budivelnyk starters finished in double figures.
Archie Goodwin led the charge with 21 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field and 7-of-10 from the free throw line.
Kentucky forward posted six rebounds and five assists.
Jerai Grant was huge in the second half.
Clemson big man patrolled the paint at both ends of the court and scored 10 of his 14 points after the break.
Johnny Berhanemeskel made the shots from every position.
University of Ottawa star (2010-2015) had 13 points and forced five fouls.
Bohdan Bliznyuk scored 13 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
Small forward filled the stat line with a team high two steals and one block.
Vyacheslav Bobrov contributed with 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field.
He had eight rebounds and two blocks too.
Wesley Van Beck shined for Kalev/Cramo.
A shooting guard from the World capital of Oil – Van Beck played at Houston – scored 19 points on 7-of-14 attempts from the field.
Hugo Toom had 12 points, with a bulk of those in the first half.
Zigmārs Raimo stood the ground in the paint.
A former Hawaii big man scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds.
Key stats
Kalev/Cramo had a poor first half from the three point land, making just 1-of-11 attempts.
It was a bad sign for the home team as Budivelnyk controlled the paint throughout the game (32-22).
Kalev/Cramo focused on defense and transition basketball.
They unlocked part of their potential and returned into the game.
Kalev/Cramo oustcored Budivelnyk in the second half 38-44.
Heiko Rannula`s team cut the gap to five points – twice.
Oleksandr Kovliar made four consecutive free throws for a 78-73 deficit with 01:33 left.
Henri Wade-Chatman hit a three pointer with 51 seconds to go 81-76.
A foul followed of course.
Archie Goodwin missed the first attempt but the second try was good 82-76.
Wade-Chatman missed the next shot and the hosts were forced to foul again.
Bliznyuk sank both free throws to seal the game.
Game notes
Four teams qualified for the 2022 Final Four – directly after the group stage.
Budivelnyk Kyiv became the first team to qualify for the 2023 playoffs.
Valeriy Plekhanov was announced as the team`s head coach on July 29, 2022.
He was one of the co-founders of the basketball club Donetsk.
Plekhanov worked in the Donbas city from 2008 to 2014.
Donetsk reached the Ukraine Cup final in 2014 to fell at the hands of...Budivelnyk.
The Builders played at Euroleague in 2013-2014.
Nine years after that fateful season they are eyeing for more success internationally.
Budivelnyk has a 4-0 record in Tallinn.
Kalev/Cramo dropped to 2-3 but remain in a hunt for the playoffs.
Wednesday, January 4, Tallinn (GMT+3h)
BC Budivelnyk 73–59 TalTech Optibet
Šiauliai 79–71 BC Kalev/Cramo
Thursday, January 5, Tallinn (GMT+3h)
TalTech Optibet 81–86 Šiauliai
BC Kalev/Cramo 76–84 Budivelnyk
STANDINGS, as of January 5, 2023
Group A
Budivelnyk Kyiv 4-0 (+56) Qualified
Kalev/Cramo 2-3 (+26)
Zastal Zielona Gora 2-2 (-14)
Polski Cukier Start Lublin 2-1 (+29)
Šiauliai 2-0 (+13)
KB Sigal Prishtina 1-3 (-40)
TalTech Optibet 0-4 (-70)
Tie-breaker: Kalev/Cramo 1-1, +6; Sigal Prishtina 1-1, +3; Zastal Zielona Gora 1-1, -9.