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Olimpia, who felt the encouragement of Žalgiris in the background throughout the match, never allowed the hosts to get away and clinched the eighteenth victory in the Euroleague this season.
“I think we have beaten a very good team. In my opinion,” Žalgiris “is one of the best-trained teams in the league. They show an impressive quality defense as they press for 40 minutes. It’s not easy to play against them. If I’m not mistaken, they won seven games in a row at home.
In this situation, when we are without our starting five, M.Rollas did a great job both in defense and in attack. And our defense was what was needed in the playoffs.
It was a playoff game, because now all games are like that. I am happy with the victory. And I hope we are on top in the next six games, “said E. Messina.
This match was already the second match for both teams this week. On Tuesday, Kaunas beat Vilerbano ASVEL 85:75. Olimpia Milan lost to Fenerbahce Istanbul on Wednesday.
– Coaches, you had a very productive but unsuccessful game just two days ago. Was this match determined by Žalgiris’ fatigue or defense?
– I think it’s a combination of both. Also the fact that we lost at home before this match and we were a bit nervous, confused.
So you don’t want to lose another game. I think it’s perfectly normal. The Euroleague is unusual. Yesterday we saw Anadolu Efes beat CSKA by 35 points when they lost by a similar difference three months ago.
Everyone starts the game at some point. Two days ago, we didn’t play with the defense we needed to play in this league, but Fenerbahce had a great night offense and they deserved to win.
Today was an absolutely different game. I don’t think they can be compared. This is not a bad match if you have won five or six points from Žalgiris. I don’t think there is anything wrong. I completely disagree with this assessment.
– After the last match you won in Milan, we saw a good moment when you shared your ideas with Mr. Schiller. How unusual was it to receive questions from an opposing coach? And another question: how do you think he’s doing in his Euroleague debut season, knowing that he arrived after three years of working from a completely different environment?
– First of all, I think he’s a very smart coach. I did not meet him in the United States when we were both there. I met him here.
In my opinion he is a very good personality with a lot of knowledge. The answer to the next question is that it is not easy to come to another country with a different mindset.
A season ago he lost to P. Garino, which would have been very important for this team, as he would have played on the easy edge and let M. Grigonis play in his position.
He did not include A. Milaknis in this match. In my opinion, they have a good defense, and in attack they rely on all basketball players. I believe in this coach.
– Coaches, last year Lithuanian basketball had a difficult time dealing with Danish basketball. Can you tell us a bit about how S. Shields is improving in Milan this season?
– I think he has a great season. I am very happy with it. He is one of our best players. Play on both sides of the court: defend, attack, make decisions. Even today, it was very important to our victory. We are all very happy about it.
– Coach, what was your idea to stop Marius Grigonis and the entire attacking team “Žalgiris”?
– We tried very hard. Grigonis cannot be completely stopped. You can try to make it harder for them, but you can’t stop this team entirely. You can try to reduce the number of chances of receiving the ball.
I think we had a good last position where K. Hines blocked the pitch. We took advantage of the weak side well, which we did not do in the game with Fenerbahce.
We are a team that works hard on defense and today we did it again and we won the game. It was a very difficult game that any team could win.
Although by some points, we lead all the parties. It is not easy to lead by two or three points and stay calm. I have to respect my players a lot, I am very grateful to them.
