National League Round 20 (Regular Season): Irbis beat Barsy Atyrau by two after a very close game

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

Third-ranked Barsy Atyrau (13-6) was very close to win a game against first ranked Irbis (18-1) in Almaty on Thursday. Irbis managed to secure only two-point victory 78-76. However their fans expected easier game. Irbis made 19-of-24 free shots (79.2 percent) during the game. International center Robert Pan (202-1995) orchestrated the victory by scoring 25 points and 5 rebounds. American guard Lorenzo Anderson (190-2000, college: Peru St.) contributed with 18 points and 10 rebounds for the winners. American point guard Jarvis Garrett (182-1995, college: URI) replied with 18 points and 9 assists for Barsy Atyrau. Barsy Atyrau's coach Tigran Gyokchyan rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Irbis have an impressive 13-game winning streak. They maintain first position with 18-1 record. Barsy Atyrau at the other side keeps the third place with six games lost. Irbis are again looking forward to face Barsy Atyrau (#3) at home in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Barsy Atyrau will play against Almaty L. and is hoping to prove to their fans that this time they can win.
The game in Pavlodar was also worth to mention about. Sixth ranked Almaty L. (8-12) played at the court of 8th ranked Irtysh (1-19). Almaty L. managed to secure a 8-point victory 106-98. Worth to mention a great performance of Russian Aleksey Chilikin (207-1993) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 21 points and 16 rebounds and Stanislav Sahipov who added 23 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists during the contest. American point guard Keshon Tabb (180-1999, college: Rust) responded with a triple-double by scoring 23 points, 6 rebounds, 11 assists and 10 steals. Irtysh's coach Zhuldys Baydusenova tested eleven players, but that didn't help to avoid defeat in this game. Newly promoted Almaty L. maintains sixth position with 8-12 record. Irtysh lost eighth consecutive game. Irtysh at the other side, also newcomer in the league, stay dead last with 19 lost games. Almaty L. will play against higher ranked Barsy Atyrau (#3) at home in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Irtysh will have a break next round.
The game in Pavlodar supposed to be also quite interesting. Sixth ranked Almaty L. (8-12) played at the court of 8th ranked Irtysh (1-19). Almaty L. smashed Irtysh 109-69 on Wednesday. The winners were led by Aleksey Chilikin who scored that evening 22 points and 7 rebounds. Even 28 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals by Keshon Tabb did not help to save the game for Irtysh. Irtysh's coach Zhuldys Baydusenova gave up on the game allowing to play ten players seeing no chance for a win. Newly promoted Almaty L. maintains sixth position with 8-12 record. Irtysh lost eighth consecutive game. Irtysh at the other side, also newcomer in the league, stay dead last with 19 lost games. Almaty L. will meet at home higher ranked Barsy Atyrau (#3) in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Irtysh will have a break next round.

In the last two games of round 20 Astana Ac. was beaten by Aktobe on the road 82-70. Aktobe won against Astana Ac. on its own court 87-82.



Irtysh - Almaty L. 98-106

The game in Pavlodar was also worth to mention about. Sixth ranked Almaty L. (8-12) played at the court of 8th ranked Irtysh (1-19). Almaty L. managed to secure a 8-point victory 106-98. Almaty L. outrebounded Irtysh 52-22 including a 37-17 advantage in defensive rebounds. Irtysh was plagued by 32 personal fouls down the stretch. Worth to mention a great performance of Russian Aleksey Chilikin (207-1993) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 21 points and 16 rebounds and the former international guard Stanislav Sahipov (190-2002) who added 23 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists during the contest. American point guard Keshon Tabb (180-1999, college: Rust) responded with a triple-double by scoring 23 points, 6 rebounds, 11 assists and 10 steals and guard Meyrambek Shamuratov (176-2001) scored 17 points. Both teams had five players each who scored in double figures. Irtysh's coach Zhuldys Baydusenova tested eleven players, but that didn't help to avoid defeat in this game. Newly promoted Almaty L. maintains sixth position with 8-12 record. Irtysh lost eighth consecutive game. Irtysh at the other side, also newcomer in the league, stay dead last with 19 lost games. Almaty L. will play against higher ranked Barsy Atyrau (#3) at home in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Irtysh will have a break next round.
Top scorers:
Almaty L.: S.Stanislav 23+6reb+4ast, A.Chilikin 21+16reb+1ast, S.Daniil 19+6reb+4ast, N.Timofeev 16+6reb, D.Albrant 10+6reb, F.Nikita 5+2reb
Irtysh: K.Tabb 23+6reb+11ast, S.Meyrambek 17+3reb+2ast, B.Vadim 16+3ast, N.Gushchin 15+2reb+1ast, I.Ruslan 10+1reb, I.Ali 8+2reb

Aktobe - Astana Ac. 82-70

Everything could happen at the game between two tied teams. Both fourth ranked Aktobe and 5th ranked Astana Ac. had identical 10-9 record. This time Aktobe used a home court advantage and beat the opponent from Astana 82-70 on Tuesday night. Aktobe forced 23 Astana Ac. turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 27 assists. The winners were led by forward Sergei Bormatenkov (191-1991) who scored that evening 24 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists and American point guard Shakir Smith (185-1992, college: ASU) supported him with 13 points, 9 assists and 5 steals. Even 10 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists by the former international point guard Magzhan Sarsengaliev (187-2002) did not help to save the game for Astana Ac.. International point guard Alexandr Orazbekov (180-2002) added 13 points and 4 assists for the guests. Both teams had five players each who scored in double figures. Astana Ac.'s coach Mikhail Lonshakov let to play twelve players, but that didn't help to avoid defeat in this game. Aktobe have a solid three-game winning streak. They maintain fourth position with 11-9 record. Newly promoted Astana Ac. keeps the fifth place with ten games lost. Aktobe will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game. Astana Ac. will play against Caspiy Aktau (#7) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Aktobe: B.Sergei 24+6reb+4ast, J.Williams 16+6reb+1ast, S.Smith 13+4reb+9ast, K.Neff 11+4reb+5ast, B.Nazmutdinov 11+4reb+6ast, V.Petrishinets 5+6reb
Astana Ac.: A.Orazbekov 13+2reb+4ast, A.Sardal 11+2reb+2ast, I.Vladislav 11+1reb, V.Likhodey 11+5reb+2ast, M.Sarsengaliev 10+6reb+5ast, V.Simonov 8+1reb+3ast

Irtysh - Almaty L. 69-109

The game in Pavlodar supposed to be also quite interesting. Sixth ranked Almaty L. (8-12) played at the court of 8th ranked Irtysh (1-19). Almaty L. smashed Irtysh 109-69 on Wednesday. Almaty L. outrebounded Irtysh 48-36 including a 37-22 advantage in defensive rebounds. Almaty L. shot the lights out from three sinking 14 long-distance shots on high 53.8 percentage. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 28 assists comparing to just 10 passes made by Irtysh's players. The winners were led by Russian Aleksey Chilikin (207-1993) who scored that evening 22 points and 7 rebounds and the former international center Daniel Albrant (205-1998) supported him with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Five Almaty L. players scored in double figures. Even 28 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals by American point guard Keshon Tabb (180-1999, college: Rust) did not help to save the game for Irtysh. Guard Ali Isagulov (186-2004) added 6 points and 7 rebounds for the hosts. Irtysh's coach Zhuldys Baydusenova gave up on the game allowing to play ten players seeing no chance for a win. Newly promoted Almaty L. maintains sixth position with 8-12 record. Irtysh lost eighth consecutive game. Irtysh at the other side, also newcomer in the league, stay dead last with 19 lost games. Almaty L. will meet at home higher ranked Barsy Atyrau (#3) in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Irtysh will have a break next round.
Top scorers:
Almaty L.: A.Chilikin 22+7reb+1ast, D.Albrant 19+8reb, F.Nikita 14+7reb+1ast, S.Stanislav 12+6reb+8ast, K.Dias 11+7reb+4ast, S.Daniil 11+2reb+8ast
Irtysh: K.Tabb 28+5reb+4ast, S.Meyrambek 9+1ast, B.Vadim 8+2reb+1ast, I.Ruslan 8+3reb, Z.Shakhnazar 6+4reb, I.Ali 6+7reb+2ast

Aktobe - Astana Ac. 87-82

Everything could happen at the game between two tied teams. Both fourth ranked Aktobe and 5th ranked Astana Ac. had identical 10-9 record. This time Aktobe used a home court advantage and defeated the opponent from Astana 87-82 on Wednesday night. Aktobe forced 20 Astana Ac. turnovers and had a 17-5 advantage in offensive rebounds. Aktobe looked well-organized offensively handing out 24 assists. The winners were led by American point guard Shakir Smith (185-1992, college: ASU) who scored that evening 28 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists and forward Vassiliy Petrishinets (198-1989) supported him with 9 points and 8 rebounds. Four Aktobe players scored in double figures. Even a double-double of 16 points, 14 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 blocks by Russian center Igor Kanygin (207-1994, agency: Stanislav Ryzhov) did not help to save the game for Astana Ac.. International point guard Alexandr Orazbekov (180-2002) added 8 points and 9 assists for the guests. Astana Ac.'s coach Mikhail Lonshakov tried various players' combinations and tested in total twelve players, but that didn't help to avoid defeat in this game. Aktobe have a solid three-game winning streak. They maintain fourth position with 11-9 record. Newly promoted Astana Ac. keeps the fifth place with ten games lost. Aktobe will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game. Astana Ac. will play against Caspiy Aktau (#7) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Aktobe: S.Smith 28+7reb+9ast, K.Neff 12+2reb+1ast, A.Marat 11+2reb+5ast, B.Sergei 11+4reb+4ast, V.Petrishinets 9+8reb+2ast, B.Nazmutdinov 7+6reb
Astana Ac.: I.Kanygin 16+14reb+7ast, D.Vadim 12+1ast, V.Simonov 12+5reb+1ast, M.Sarsengaliev 11+2ast, A.Sardal 10+3reb+3ast, A.Orazbekov 8+4reb+9ast

Irbis - Barsy Atyrau 78-76

Third-ranked Barsy Atyrau (13-6) was very close to win a game against first ranked Irbis (18-1) in Almaty on Thursday. Irbis managed to secure only two-point victory 78-76. However their fans expected easier game. Irbis made 19-of-24 free shots (79.2 percent) during the game. International center Robert Pan (202-1995) orchestrated the victory by scoring 25 points and 5 rebounds. American guard Lorenzo Anderson (190-2000, college: Peru St.) contributed with a double-double by scoring 18 points and 10 rebounds for the winners. American point guard Jarvis Garrett (182-1995, college: URI) replied with 18 points and 9 assists and the former international center Vladimir Ivanov (208-1994) added 13 points and 4 assists in the effort for Barsy Atyrau. Four Barsy Atyrau players scored in double figures. Barsy Atyrau's coach Tigran Gyokchyan rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Irbis have an impressive 13-game winning streak. They maintain first position with 18-1 record. Barsy Atyrau at the other side keeps the third place with six games lost. Irbis are again looking forward to face Barsy Atyrau (#3) at home in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Barsy Atyrau will play against Almaty L. and is hoping to prove to their fans that this time they can win.
Top scorers:
Irbis: R.Pan 25+5reb+3ast, L.Anderson 18+10reb+3ast, M.Myers 13+7reb+4ast, A.Zhigulin 9+7reb+3ast, N.Bazhin 8+3reb+2ast, V.Fabrikantov 3+1reb
Barsy Atyrau: J.Garrett 18+2reb+9ast, V.Hendrix 14+6reb, V.Ivanov 13+4reb+4ast, J.Gregg 10+6reb, R.Bogdan 9+5reb+3ast, M.Uapov 7+3reb