An easy victory over Buducnost
With Zach Leday as the MVP, Olympiacos beat Buducnost 92-70 at the SEF for the 10th round of the Euroleague.
Missed free throws and poor perimeter percentages forced the ‘reds’ to trail the Montenegro team at the beginning of the game 910-13, at 5’). Better defense and Zach LeDay winning the battle in the post playing the center position, allowed David Blatt’s players to close the first quarter leading by 5 (25-20). Buducnost run a partial 6-0 and got ahead 26-25, but with Zach LeDay running point (who played the ‘4’ after Milutinov entered the game), our team responded with a 9-0 streak and got to lead by 8 (34-26, at 24’). From that point on, the ‘reds’ completely controlled the tempo and increased the distance even further (44-34, at 19’). However, in the last minute of the second quarter, a ‘black out’ in the attack allowed Jackson help his team close in at 7 points with a three (44-37, at 20’).
David Blatt’s players started the second half determined to finish with the game fast … Playing a superb defensive game – that stopped the Montenegrins from scoring for more than four minutes – totally dominating rebounding and with excellent collaborations when attacking, they succeeded in skyrocketing the difference to +20 (57-37, at 24’). Buducnost tried to react and with Clark spearheading the offense closed in at 13p. (60-47). However, Olympiacos immediately improved his defense and with Zach LeDayoffering an offensive show, the third quarter ended at +25 for the hosts (76-51, at 30’). Olympiacoscontinued with the same levels of energy on both ends of the floor, got to lead even by 27p. (84-57, at 35’), and finished the game without facing the slightest form of resistance…
The quarters: 25-20, 44-37, 76-51, 92-70
Οlympiacos (Blatt): Williams-Goss 4 (5 as), Spanoulis 17 (1 3pm., 4 as), Τίμα 5 (1), Milutinov10 (7 reb, 2 as), Strelnieks 7, Vezenkov 2, Printezis11 (1 3pm., 8 reb), Papanikolaou 6 (1), Mantzaris(6 reb, 6 as, 1 st, 1 bl), Bogris 2, Leday 28 (8/9 free throws, 7/8 2pm, 2/3 3pm, 8 reb, 1 as, 2 st).
Buducnost (Dzikic): Jackson 12 (2), Sehovic Suad5 (1), Clark Earl 15 (1), Barovic 6, Clarke Coty 5, Gordic 14 (2), Omic 8, Popovic, Νikolic 5.
«For me, the MVP is Mantzaris»
Zach LeDay had an outstanding ranking, although David Blatt chose Vangleis Mantzaris as the MVP: “The games are never easy until you make them so… Buducnost played very well in the first half. I respect everything they have done up to now with the Euroleague. This was the message that had been relayed to our players and how we should have approached said situation. The way we defended in the third quarter and how we moved the ball was very good. I’m very happy that everyone who stepped on the floor have had a positive input. Sometimes, you underestimate the influence a player has on the game and you focus on how much he scores or doesn’t score. In my mind, Vangelis Mantzaris was the best player on the floor tonight. He was excellent when defending, he run the team in offense, he organized small winning plays, and those are the small things that make all the difference in the game. That’s what makes teams good”.
On whether the team is playing the way he wants it to, he replied: “We are in for 1/3 of the season. If we can be playing consistently and continue getting better, then we are in a good place. We are not 100% at the desired level, but we are having a steady progress and that’s good”.
When asked to comment on the low percentagesBuducnost has had with threes, he said: “A teamthat scores 17 threes when winning and 7 whenlosing, and when losing by 30 points, it’s easy to understand what the key to game is and work on it. But it’s not how many they made, it’s rather how many they got to shoot. When they score, they win… They generally shoot about 30, tonight they only got to shoot around 19 and that’s part of our defense and our plan. When you are a coach and prepare the game you know what the keys are and what you need to be doing. But the thing is, your players need to execute the plan correctly. Our players have certainly done that and they deserve the credit”
On his part, Buducnost coach, Alexandar Dzikic, commented: “Congratulations to Olympiacos, they were obviously better tonight. This is not a surprise, they are the better team, especially considering the situation we have had to face with the international players. However, that’s how it’s done… We missed open shots and we allowed them to score in the transition which they are very good at and in the fast break. Also, Zach Ledayplayed his best game to this day with Olympiacos”.