This is what the protagonists of the game had to say after the dust settled.
Bartzokas on beating Real: "The key was our defensive stability"
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4 mins read
Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos Piraeus
"In my opinion, the key was our defensive stability. We were consistent on defense for 40 minutes, staying with our plan. Everybody gave everything on defense. It is not easy to hold Real Madrid to scoring 68 points. They have a lot of talent, and we needed to make a great effort on defense."
"I would like to congratulate the team, obviously it is a big win. I think we controlled the pace of the game for 40 minutes. We were leading most of the 40 minutes, so we deserved to win. It is not easy against this great team. Right now they don't have any holes, having two or three players in every position, everybody is athletic, everybody is talented. So leading for almost 40 minutes and playing with this intensity, I think we saw our potential for this season. Of course, I would like to give big credit to our fans, for the big boost they gave us. We missed them the previous season. And also, because I am Greek and I know how everybody is thinking that we should we win the EuroLeague, I would like to say that this is just one win in the second game of the EuroLeague season. Being humble, keeping your mind in your head, and thinking always with the same approach of thinking about just one game and having a focus on the next one, will help us be successful."
Pablo Laso, Real Madrid
"I learned what I already know. That the Euroleague is very difficult, playing away from home is difficult. I think we were solid during 36, 37 minutes, but in 3 or 4 minutes they scored good baskets, good shots. We missed a lot of open jumpers. We fought until the end, but we were behind them. We got to learn that every EuroLeague game is like this."
"I congratulate Olympiacos for the victory. I think it was a very solid game for both teams, good game of basketball. I think both teams played at a great level defensively. And I think it was in 2 minutes that Vezenkov and Dorsey scored 9 or 10 points in a row and that made the difference. That opened up the game and it was difficult for us to come back on the scoreboard. When you take a look at the stats, it is very difficult to win away from home with 12% from three-point line. we were 3-for-24. A lot of time numbers are only numbers, but today I think it was decisive that our three-point percentage was not good enough to win. Give credit to Olympiacos because they played a very good game, very physical, and they have a very good victory that we know we will have to make up in the future."
Sasha Vezenkov, Olympiacos Piraeus
"It was a demanding game. It was an exhausting game. Real Madrid is a really physical team. We needed to manage their offensive game. On offense we did not play great, but in the second half we allowed 32 points, which is incredible in the EuroLeague nowadays. We did a great job and we won this game. I hit one out of seven threes, but I try to give everything to the team, in good moments and bad moments, but the most important thing is that we won."
Tyler Dorsey, Olympiacos Piraeus
"It was a defensive game. In the first half both teams were playing good defense. We couldn't get the scoring going, but in the second half we moved the ball better, we got better looks and we closed it out. We knew we needed to have a better second half to push the lead, it was a close game all night. We needed a hard-fought battle to go into the double-week next week, to mentally test us. The atmosphere was great in there. When it gets loud, we feed off that energy. We need that every game, and we are going to take care of the home court."
Nigel Williams-Goss Real Madrid
"I think our turnovers and allowing too many offensive rebounds really hurt us. We put ourselves in a bad spot. If you do that on the road against a good team, it is going to be tough to win. It is always tough to win on the road, especially here in Greece where they have really great fans. You got to be sharp, you can't turn the ball over, you can’t give up a lot of offensive rebounds. We gotta tighten up those areas we can control. When we do those things, and we are at our best, I think we are tough to beat. But we have to be focused to control those things."