Zenit

St. Petersburg's Zenit finished the regular EuroLeague season in just 8th place, but in the series against Barcelona, this team is showing that they definitely cannot be written off. Miraculously saving themselves in the first game of the series in Barcelona, the Zenit team was close to victory in the second game of the series as well, but had to be disappointed. The most important thing, of course, is that Zenit has every chance to equalize the series at home, and as history shows, anything can happen in decisive games.

The most important players in this series for Zenit are undoubtedly K. Pangos, who is simply miraculously orchestrating the team's play and playing over 30 minutes per game, as well as W. Thomas and K.C. Rivers, whose three-pointers in crucial moments secured the first away victory. This series has quite clearly shown the shortcomings in Zenit's rotation, as the main players have to play much more time than they should, resulting in Barcelona's team, with a wider rotation, preserving more energy during the game.

Nevertheless, Zenit looks tactically well-prepared in this series and does not give up a single inch of the court without a fight. To maintain intrigue in the series, they will not only have to maintain physicality, make shots from good created positions, but also stay focused on defense and limit Barcelona's spurts as much as possible, which largely determined the Spanish team's victories in games 2-3.

Barcelona

Barcelona were considered the clear favorites of the series, but probably did not expect to have so much trouble with Zenit. Šaras keeps talking about how the players are not fulfilling the details and do not fully understand the importance of the match, but in Barcelona's lineup, we have a group of players who have seen the highest level of battles, so the playoff atmosphere is certainly nothing new to them.

B. Davies, who shone in Žalgiris, has already become a leader in Barcelona, and stopping him seems very difficult for the Zenit team. This series lacks a greater contribution from N. Calathes and N. Mirotić, but with Barcelona controlling the situation and having so many talented players, it doesn't make much difference which player performs better in individual games – the most important thing is to find the best-looking players on the given day and secure the victory.

Prediction

The fourth and possibly decisive game of the series will take place in St. Petersburg, so Zenit will have a minimal advantage playing in front of their fans, but this will certainly not be the decisive factor in this match. Barcelona looked more and more in rhythm with each game, and the third game of the series played away seemed the “easiest” of all played. Zenit has shown character in this series and has a chance to extend the series, but the favorite of this match will undoubtedly be the Barcelona team. It's hard to imagine what else Zenit can surprise with, while Barcelona is just reaching their best possible sporting form.