Ukrainian player Sakhniuk had a perfect first match with City Wings scoring 22 points and 27 rebounds to help the team end its losing streak. —  Photo courtesy of VBA

CẦN THƠ — City Wings struggled to win against the Cần Thơ Catfish in the first match with extra time at VBA 2023.

Both teams entered the match with the desire to win in order to have hope of a place in the playoffs.

The team that won would be only one win behind the fourth-place team.

The away team City Wings had a big change in the big man position which Yevgen Sakhniuk replaced Amir Williams for the rest of the season.

City Wings opened the score thanks to Vincent Nguyễn's shots. New player Yevgen Sakhniuk quickly caught up with the system built by coach Erik Olson.

Within four minutes, the Ukrainian player scored 8 points to help City Wings lead 12-6.

But the Catfish once again proved they are not easy to beat, especially when they are playing at home in Cần Thơ Gymnasium.

Michael Soy and Brachon Griffin had two successful three-pointers to help the Cantho Catfish equalise the score 12-12. The two teams continued to maintain the balance until Trần Văn Trung stole the ball and had an assist to Sakhniuk, City Wings took the lead 19-17.

In the last two minutes of the first quarter, Jeremy Smith sped up and scored seven points to help City Wings close with a 26-17 lead.

Entering the second quarter, Yevgen Sakhniuk continued to be a solid defensive player and helped the away team to increase the gap.

City Wings players scored and created a huge gap at 51-32 before the break.

Not wanting a second consecutive loss at home, the Catfish tried to shorten the gap after the break. But their opponents gave them serious trouble, ending the third quarter at 46-62.

DeAngelo Hamilton put Yevgen Sakhniuk in danger of being disqualified in the final quarter when the Ukrainian player made his fourth personal foul at the start of the Q4

Hamilton also had a three-pointer to help Catfish narrow the gap to 11 points (51-62).

That three-pointer fueled the spirit of the Catfish to start a spectacular comeback.

Thanks to Michael Soy's five points in a row and Huỳnh Thanh Tâm's steal and assist, the Catfish took the lead 71-70 for the first time in the game.

The time ended with a tie of 73-73 after Jeremy Smith and Hamilton scored two points for City Wings and Catfish, respectively, leading to overtime.

Both teams played tit-for-tat until the game had just one minute left, Sakhniuk shone again to help the away team put one hand on victory with four points in a row before Jeremy Smith sealed the victory for City Wings with a score 86-81.

Jeremy Smith won the Player of the Game with 34 points and 10 rebounds. While the Ukrainian player, Sakhniuk, had a perfect first match for City Wings with 22 points and 27 rebounds. — VNS