The first game in the new season 2018/2019 presidential basketball club "Astana" held at home against CSKA Moscow.

The pioneers in the first seconds of the game were JJ Obrien, Anthony Clemmons, Kenneth Hortor and Jeffrey Grossel, led by the permanent captain of the team, Rustam Yergali.

Under the cheering applause of the fans, according to the results of the first devil, the score was fixed in favor of Astana 15:14. Obviously dissatisfied with the course of the game, CSKA coach Dimitris Itoudis strictly motivated the team. After that, the "CSKA" began to play the game more aggressively and went into the lead in the account. Five minutes before the end of the first half of the game, Astana managed to score only two points in the ring, while the opponent scored 15. After a timeout, Emil Raikovich gave instructions and Astana played, as in the first quarter, reducing the backlog.
However, the second period ended with a score of 27-41 in favor of CSKA.

After the break, the players of “Astana” again went into a confident attack and reduced the gap to one point. Waiting in the air above the parquet, the fans held their breath. But followed by a heavy three-pointer from Ivan Ukhov, and then followed a series of unanswered goals from CSKA. It is worth emphasizing that the leaders of “Astana” - Rustam Yergali and Anthony Clemmons have already scored four personal fouls each, which made it difficult for the coach to take subsequent actions. Chagrin from the team and players was injured by the team's novice and the points leader of Astana, Jeffrey Grossel, who injured his arm during the game. The final part of the game Muscovites owned control over the game and took the victory home.

The most productive:
Astana: Jeffrey Grossell (14 + 5 rebounds), JJ O'Brien (12 + 5 rebounds + 4 assists), Anthony Clemmons (11 + 3 steals).
CSKA: Othello Hunter (18 + 6 rebounds), Corey Higgins (16), Semyon Antonov (10), Alec Peters (9 + 6 rebounds).

Astana head coach Emil Raykovich:
- It was not an easy game, considering that we are not yet fully staffed. I think that today our team went all out on the floor. Still, we played against one of the best teams in Europe. We also made mistakes, and I'm talking about the things we control. And then there is the class and level of the opponent. In defense, CSKA used pressure and went well into a quick attack. In general, I want to note that we have a lot of work ahead, and this was only the first game. We still have a lot to do. I congratulate the team of CSKA and coach Dimitris Itoudis with a victory! Good luck in the next games

CSKA head coach Dimitris Itoudis:
- Congratulations to the team, we completed this tour with a second victory. We had good moments in the game, but it is obvious that we need to work more. We need to be ready for more serious matches that are waiting for us ahead.

The next matches will be played by the team on its site, on October 9 and 10, Astana will host the Barça Atyrau basketball club as part of the regular championship of the Kazakhstan Championship among men's teams of the National League.

The next match within the VTB United League Astana will be held on the road, on October 13, the capital basketball players will go to the capital of Belarus, where they will meet with the local Basketball Club Tsmoki Minsk.

Source: pbcastana.kz