When Prometey Slobozhanske needed someone to turn to in its 7DAYS EuroCup Eighthfinals matchup against Veolia Towers Hamburg on Tuesday evening, Illia Sydorov was the player who stepped up.
Prometey was without D.J. Kennedy, who was on the sidelines in street clothes and will miss the postseason with an injury, while Caleb Agada was included on the bench but didn’t step onto the floor after an injury of his own. Then there was D.J. Stephens, who didn’t feature in the Estonia-Latvia League Final Four over the weekend due to injury but played 34:33 against Hamburg.
Stephens was able to make a positive contribution on the night, pairing 15 points with 9 rebounds, but it was Sydorov that saw Prometey over the line. Up until the fourth quarter, the 26-year-old had enjoyed a decent night, scoring 12 points on 3-of-5 shots from two-point range and 2-of-4 from three, in addition to grabbing 1 rebound and dishing 1 assist. But, in the closing stages, he rose to the occasion to help Prometey grab its first-ever win in the EuroCup Playoffs.