Culpepper leads Oktyabr to important road win

Behind 31 points from Randy Culpepper, Krasny Oktyabr Volgograd registered its second consecutive victory, downing CAI Zaragoza on the road 71-82. It not only improves Oktyabr to 2-2 record in Group I but it gives it a season sweep of CAI which led for most part of the first 25 minutes, before the visitors took the lead for good with a 0-9 run late in the third quarter. In the fourth, Culpepper and Romeo Travis took matters into their own hands, scoring 16 of Oktyabr's 25 fourth quarter points, and leading it to victory. Travis amassed 19 points plus 14 rebounds, and Lamont Hamilton chipped in with 10 points in victory. Rasko Katic scored 11, while Marcus Landry and Henk Norel each had 10 in defeat.

Team traded leads early on, as Travis and Culpepper hit triples for the visitors and 6-10 lead, but Kevin Lisch, Rasko Katic and Pedro Llompart gave CAI 14-13 after 10 minutes. In the second quarter Chris Goulding scored 5 points, and Marcus Landry had a basket-plus-free throw on a fastbreak to give the hosts 27-20. Henk Norel scored twice more inside for CAI, but triples from Artem Komissarov, Culpepper and eventually Lamont Hamilton helped Oktyabr cut it to 33-32 at halftime.

Culpepper and Cuthbert Victor kept the visitors within a single points early in the third, but Lisch, Jason Robinson, Landry and Katic all scored from close range for 47-42. But Oktyabr responded with a basket from Hamilton, and back-to-back triples from Culpepper for 47-51, and Travis nailed a three to make it 52-57 after 30 minutes. Llompart got the hosts within 58-59, but Culpepper hit a triple, then assisted Victor for 58-64. Landry scored twice for CAI, but Culpepper had a basket-plus-foul, and Victor a triple for 65-72 with 2 minutes to go. Jason Robinson had a layup giving the hosts hope, but Travis and Culpepper sealed the deal.