Astana open their National League semi-final series

Astana begin their Kazakhstan National League semi-final series at home against Barsy Atyrau. After finishing the regular season top of the table, the capital club secured home-court advantage and advanced straight to the semi-finals, skipping the quarter-final stage.

The opening games of the series will be played on 10 and 11 May at the Saryarka Velodrome, with tip-off set for 17:00. Barsy Atyrau reached the semi-finals after beating Tobol in the quarter-finals. The series will be played to three wins, with Game 3 taking place in Atyrau.

The teams met eight times during the 2025/26 regular season, with Astana winning all eight matchups. Overall, since the 2014/15 season, the clubs have faced each other 79 times, with Astana coming out on top in 68 of those games.

Last season, Astana also opened the playoffs against Barsy Atyrau and won the series 3–0.

E.J. Day has been Astana’s offensive leader this season, averaging 18.5 points per game, while also leading the team in assists (7.17) and steals (1.83). Askar Maidyekin continues to anchor the paint, averaging 6.88 rebounds and 0.75 blocks per game.

For Barsy Atyrau, Michael Mays leads the team in scoring with 24.38 points per game. Aibolat Omarov is their top rebounder (7.25), Bogdan Rabchenyuk leads in assists (3.25), while Yeset Zharkylov tops the team in steals and blocks.

Winning the National League title remains Astana’s main goal this season. After a strong regular-season campaign, where the team won 28 of 32 games, the focus now shifts to the playoffs and the fight for the championship.

Askar Maidyekin, Astana centre:

“The mindset going into the playoffs is exactly what it should be — focused and competitive. We’re preparing seriously for the series, studying the opponent and paying attention to every detail. I think we’ll be fully ready for these games.

Barsy Atyrau are a tough team with quality imports and talented young local players. We expect a hard-fought series, just like the games we had against them during the regular season.”