Miller's 17 Points, 11 Assists Lift Lokomotiv-Kuban

Patrick Miller ran the show for Lokomotiv-Kuban in Krasnodar, finishing with 17 points and 11 assists as the side beat Yenisey to open the VTB United League regular season with a win.

Miller shot 5 of 10 from the field, 1 of 3 from three-point range and 6 of 8 from the free-throw line. Lokomotiv-Kuban play their home fixtures at the Basket-Hall, which holds 7,500.

Zenit, Betsity Parma and Avtodor also opened with wins, all standing at 1-0 alongside Lokomotiv-Kuban after the first round. Yenisey drop to 0-1, in the same bracket as Samara, UNICS and Uralmash.

MBA-MAI host CSKA next, with both sides still to open their account at 0-0.

The win comes three weeks after Gleb Firsov said the club's overhauled roster had what it takes to challenge for the title this season, and a week after VTB United League chief Ilona Korstin praised Lokomotiv-Kuban's pace and depth following their Super Cup group win over CSKA. Yenisey now sit alongside Lokomotiv-Kuban's Russian Cup form, where the Krasnodar side are third with no points from three matches — a reminder that the league opener and the cup campaign are telling different stories so far.