Khimki wins 14th straight, sets record, eliminates Montepaschi

Khimki Moscow Region had a record-setting night on Wednesday as it defeated Montepaschi Siena at home by 85-73. This win marks Khimki's 14th in a row since it lost the first regular season game against CSU Asesoft Ploiesti, the longest winning streak ever by a team in the competition. This new record replaces the previous one achieved by Unics Kazan a few weeks ago. Khimki is Group K champ with this win thanks to a 5-0 record, while Montepaschi drops to 1-4 and says goodbye to most options to stay alive in the competition. James Augustine led the winnerswith his 18 points and 8 rebounds, Marko Popovic added 13 and Kresimir Loncar and Sergey Monia posted 12 apiece. For Siena, Spencer Nelson also led the way with 18 points while Marquez Haynes and Josh Carter nailed 10 each.

A game between two such heavyweights started like it could only have, with balance on the scoreboard. Mike Green hit first fo Khimki but Josh Carter soon tied for Montepaschi, 2-2. During the following minutes the hosts managed to build a 5-point lead a couple times, but Montepaschi regrouped and Carter slammed the ball for a 12-13 lead for the guests. Siena was insisting from the arc but at 1 of 8 it wasn't the best night for them, while on the other hand Khimki was shooting perfect for two and sparked a 6-0 burst that closed the first period with an 18-13 Khimki lead. The margin reached the double figures, 28-18 when Petteri Koponen nailed a three. Spencer Nelson was wearing the offensive burden of Montepaschi almost by himself and then Kresimir Loncar scored his eighth point to close the first half, 40-30 for Khimki. The second half started like the first one had ended: Khimki controlled the tempo and kept Montepaschi at a safe distance during the first moments, but after that, the guests blasted a 2-12 burst in the final 4 minutes, with Matt Janning as the visible executor that allowed Monteopaschi to pull within one single point after 30 minutes, 59-58. In the first play of the last period, Erick Green finally completed the comeback of Siena by scoring for 59-60 but the reply was a 12-2 burst by the hosts, including eight Marko Popovic straight points, that left things back where they were minutes before, 71-62. During the final minutes of the game, Khimki managed the lead as Montepaschi saw how its effort would not be rewarded and collapsed on the court. Khimki claimed a new Eurocup record with its 14th straight win while Montepaschi will need to win and wait for other results if it wants to reach the elimination rounds.