Maskoliūnas: “I don’t know why we have to hang over the edge to demonstrate such basketball” / News

The failed shot by the Danish basketball players led the Lithuanian team to a resounding victory in the duel with Belgium. Darius Maskoliūnas’ students achieved an 84:71 rematch, but did not win by a greater advantage than they lost in the first window (they fell 65:86).

However, Maskoliūnas was satisfied with the reaction of the players after a very painful defeat and asked why the students could not compete in this way without initially experiencing the consequences.

“We are pleased that the men showed a completely different face,” Maskoliūnas began speaking at the press conference. – I don’t know why we have to hang over the edge to demonstrate such basketball, but it happened as it did. I am very happy that they have shown the character and the ability to play aggressive basketball with great energy ”.

– To what extent did this victory correct the mood after the defeat of the Danes?
– Of course, corrected. Nobody wants to see what we saw on Friday, especially in Lithuania. When you see today how they play, how they started, what was the energy … The Belgians play very physical basketball, in spring they put us in such a place that until now it hurts. Today, the men came out to the square and showed from the first minutes that not that (the Belgians) had no chance, they were a bit hanging, but they showed that they had self-esteem. Clearly, it happens (everything). I don’t know why this happens to us, but when we confront each other, we get up and run back in double rage.

– How important was the victory with a greater advantage than the loss and how much was emphasized?
– It was never emphasized at all. If you know our situation in the group, it doesn’t matter. We saw this situation during the game and we talked during a minute of rest, but it was not absolutely necessary to do so. We kept arguing and hoped that maybe we could do that.

– How do you rate the leadership of the Arno Velička team and the solution of situations one by one?
– I appreciate. Once again, Arn found himself in this window due to certain circumstances that you all know. On top of all that, Arnas doesn’t have a rhythm of play at the moment because the French championship is not on, they are only playing friendly matches. When he came to Lithuania, he did not train with us, he only joined a training session on the eve of the game on Friday. Everything is very positive. You can hold onto a lot of things, but I’m not even going to do that. I am grateful to him for coming and he helped us a lot.

– During the match, Velička did not shy away from the accusations. How responsive did you accept your comments and information?
– According to. Perhaps with time, the sooner, the faster. But everything is okay.

– How did Regimantas Miniotas take advantage of the opportunity?
– He took advantage of it a lot. I am very happy with it. In such a short time, he is absorbed quite quickly, he understands situations. There was confusion as it was used in two positions: the fourth and the fifth. It really helped us. He showed great form in Lithuania and I am very happy that he is moving to the strongest European league, the ACB. I wish you the best of luck in Spain.

– You occasionally used an extremely high five with Jonas Mačiulis, Mindaugas Kuzminskas, Eimantas Bendžius, and different centers and players. What was the idea and how did you think all five worked?
– I think it worked well. The Belgians were probably the best three-point team before this match, so we needed to close the triples and replace them with defenders. The Belgians also score a lot of points in second chances. It was important that after the exchange we had a tall man walking on the ball. In an instant it worked very well and gave the result.

– Jonas Mačiulis was very famous in this match from the bench. How important is your role?
– John was himself, nothing new. Everything is so natural. At one point, I even silenced him when the judges gave the court a warning.

– It did not prevent serious setbacks in both the first and second selection windows. Would you change anything in preparation for the third window?
– Correctly understood, we exercised on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. We have six new people on the team. I would be, but I can’t, I can’t, I can’t transmit. And for that I am grateful to the players who came for their efforts. They come from a club where they have 50 combinations, here they need to learn them again, another defense system. I would definitely like to change. I would not like to lose against the Danes, I would have more energy in the first game, I would like to change something. But can I change something so quickly, not to mention that we have no right to lose to the Danes? We really did our best. As I said after the first terrible defeat (in Belgium), it is my fault, I did not manage to prepare the players in a short time to beat the Danes.