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After two halves against the Valencia basketball players, Žalgiris, who led 45:37, lost control of the match after the break and lost 82:94. Kaunas collapsed in the third quarter when he allowed his opponents to go ahead by winning the match 25: 6.
Later, the well only got deeper. The Spaniards silently threw precise 3-pointers one after the other, and Martin Schiller, who looked at him even more calmly, was in no rush to ask for a minute of rest.
After the game, the Austrian strategist himself admitted that the visiting snipers who hit 12 points in the second half of the game were a surprise to him. The specialist, who did not anticipate such danger, regretted that the number of attacks from Valencia could not be reduced.
“It is very difficult to win when opponents hit so well and still have problems under the basket. The challenge for us was the launches of Klemen Prepeličius and Vanja Marinkovičius, they threw too much. Unfortunately, we were unable to limit the number of such attacks.
In the early days, opponents’ advances and rebounds were more painful for us. After the break, we wanted to better oppose the rivals, not let them enter the penalty area, because Valencia usually attack from short distances. We have focused on that, ”said Schiller.
According to Rokas Jokubaitis, the people of Žalgiris wanted to repeat the scene of last week’s match with Istanbul’s Anadolu Efes, when strong rivals managed to surprise their attackers. However, after the break, Valencia brought the unmotivated inhabitants of Kaunas back to reality.
“In the Euroleague, Žalgiris can hardly win with an attack. We won the first three Euroleague games because of a good defense, we succeeded with a good attack in the fourth against Anadolu Efes, and after two good times against Valencia, maybe we thought we could also attack them with an attack.After all, before the break we hit 9 3-pointers of 14. In the second half, the motivation for defense may disappear.
We didn’t really look like the leaders of the Euroleague, but it all starts with the mood. We did quite well in the first half, so what we had to highlight, the opponent’s kicks and the game in the penalty area, was not fulfilled because we were out of focus. Perhaps it is good that we have received that lesson, because so far everything has gone very well. Such a defeat is not pleasant, but I don’t think it will go wrong, “said R. Jokubaitis, recalling that a showdown with Vilnius” Rytas “is waiting on Sunday.
After the match, Artūras Milaknis stressed that Žalgiris could not respond to the level of contact that the Valencia basketball players offered. The sniper regretted that the hosts could not stop the rivals’ attacks in a timely manner, allowing them to pick easy points.
“There was a lack of level of contact. Especially fouls, this may not be the case here, but we have to understand for ourselves that running close to an opponent with a ball requires a foul. We played more than half of the quarter without fouls. It is difficult to explain.
We are beginning to emphasize this a bit, we will work and try not to repeat it. When you don’t make contact and let the opponents feel good, especially for the Spanish team, the bag looks very big for them, “said A. Milaknis.
Marius Grigonis also spoke about Valencia’s unstoppable attacks. One of the leaders of “Žalgiris” remembered Šarūnas Jasikevičius.
“In the second half, we didn’t defend and we allowed our opponents to score 90 points. When you miss 82, you can still win, but when you miss that much, it’s difficult. We didn’t hit and we didn’t look solid in individual defense. We all have to take it up responsibility and not being overly stressed. We will learn and try to correct mistakes.
This season, we don’t put a lot of emphasis on fouls before the bonus, so these kinds of things get a bit forgotten. There were a number of episodes for me and myself where I could actually commit a violation. Last season, there was a person who always screamed to do it and we often didn’t, and now nobody says it and we still don’t. “
It is true that M. Grigonis fully defended the match plan prepared by M. Schiller and did not complain about how the coach gave the team to play after the break: “The coach said to follow the match plan. But you know, a coach can say whatever he wants. When you go out and don’t follow instructions, it’s our fault. “
In the second part of the match, Žalgiris lost 10 points from three points in a row, but both M. Schiller and the players agreed that such a failed series did not affect the team psychologically, because having a good opportunity, it is necessary to attack the basket. M. Grigonis emphasized that the Lithuanian champions have bigger problems.
“It is clear that it is more fun when the shots fall, but we did not lose from the attack. 82 points is a lot. Valencia is a good team that has played us and has been stronger. We need to improve ourselves. If we win the first ones 4 games, it doesn’t mean we sweep them all away. We have our weaknesses that need to be addressed. We do it every day and I think we will have a better result in the next game. “
On Sunday “Žalgiris” will meet the guests with “Rytas”, and will play the next Euroleague game on October 29 on a trip with Vilerbano ASVEL.
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