Grodno-93 smother Minsk in Game 5 fight to seize ninth crown

There was nothing pretty about the way Grodno-93 ended their wait, and they would not have cared. In a grinding, low-scoring decider, Grodno-93 strangled Minsk 60-51 to win game 5 of the Belarusian Premier League finals and take the best-of-five series 3-2, claiming a ninth national championship at the expense of the country's most decorated club.
Grodno-93 won the title where finals are usually decided on defense. They smothered Minsk into a dismal shooting night: 28.1 percent from the field overall and a near-unwatchable 1-of-19 from three-point range, just 5.3 percent. Minsk actually controlled the glass, out-rebounding Grodno-93 50-32, but never came close to converting that edge with the ball clanging off the rim all evening.
The hosts set the tone immediately under coach Dmitry Kuzmin, winning the first quarter 17-10 and the second 17-11 to lead 34-21 at the break. Minsk edged the third 14-12 and the fourth 16-14, but the early hole was too deep, and Grodno-93's lead never seriously wobbled.
Tsimur Drukau (198-F-1999) led the champions with 19 points, getting to the line repeatedly and finishing 5-of-6 on free throws. Kirill Sitnik (190-G-1989, agency: Alti Sport) added 10 and Kirill Vinokurov (207-F/C-1999) chipped in 8 off the bench. The unsung anchor was Aliaksei Trastsinetski (200-F-1986), who scored just 2 points but pulled down 10 rebounds across 32 minutes of frontcourt work.
Minsk, coached by Eduard Kemen, got 14 points from Danila Semenyuk (198-SF-2006) and 11 from Benjamin-Pavel Dudu (198-F-1991, agency: Stanislav Ryzhov), while Kirill Vaskovtsov (202-SF-2003) posted a quiet double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds. Mukete David-Masenge (188-PG-2006) grabbed 11 boards but managed just 4 points on 1-of-11 shooting, a night that summed up his team's struggles.