Unstoppable!
The 'red' train cannot be derailed by absences. Although without Vasilis Spanoulis, Vangelis Mantzaris and Dimitris Agravanis, Olympiacos beat Valencia on the road 64-72 for the 10th day of the Euroleague and continues enjoying the view from the top of the top ranking seed.
Relying on their good defense and their domination of the post thanks to Milutinov and Printezis, the 'reds' got to lead 11-2 at 3'. Back to back mistakes however along with bad choices in the offense allowed the hists to close in at 4p (9-13), nevertheless, our team managed to keep the lead thanks to valuable solutions offered by Vasilis Toliopoulos who got on the floor on executing mode (13-20).
Two back to back threes for Valencia brought the margin down to one point (19-20), but Olympiacos reacted immediately… Ioannis Papapetrou did an excellent job in defense, made plays for his team mates in offense, and the 'reds' running a partial 12-0 found themselves leading by 13 (19-32 at 15'). The Spaniards tried to reverse the situation striking from the perimeter. Kostas Papanikolaou however took care of things and allowed our team to go to the locker rooms for the half time leading 30-35.
Valencia was patient when attacking in the second half, passed the ball to Pleiss and made a three point game (40-43 at 26'). Then it was once again Papanikolaou's time. He was all over the floor. The 27 year old forward did an excellent job on Green, grabbing one offensive board after another; he was scoring, mainly from the 6.75m. arc, passing to his team mates and was the main reason Olympiacos regained control (50-61 at 32').
The hosts made one last run to a come back, closing in at 5p (58-63 at 36'). But that was as far as they went… With good defense, five points in a row by Janis Strelnieks and a bucket by Giorgos Printezis gave Olympiacos a 12p. margin (58-70 at 38') and the reds only took care of maintaining distance to the end…
The quarters: 13-20, 30-35, 45-54, 64-72
Valencia (Vidorreta): Thomas 2, Van Rossom 7 (1), Rudez, Vives 3 (1), Martinez 3 (1), San Emeterio 1, Pleiss 14, Sastre 2, Green 26, Doornekamp 4, Hlinason 2.
Οlympiacos (Sfairopoulos): ΜcLean 4 (5 reb.), Τoliopoulos 5 (1), Papapetrou 4 (4 as), Μilutinov 6 (5 reb), Σtrelnies 12 (2 3p., 3 reb., 3 as), Printezis 12 (14 reb), Papanikolaou 13 (3 3p., 6 reb., 4 as), Roberts 7 (1), Wiltjer 2, Τhompson 7(1).
"We need to continue hard work"
The Olympiacos coach, Giannis Sfairopoulos, stated: "I would like to congratulate our players. They played a very good game tonight. We were very focused in defense and did not allow Valencia to play their game. It was very important that we controlled the game through defense and we did that from the beginning to the end. Valencia is a fighting team and we knew that should they get rhythm they would easily score 20 points in 2-3 minutes. That's why apart for small periods in the game, we controlled that and broke their tempo. In offense, we moved the ball, made good choices and despite losing some open shots and some lay ups, we did well. All the best to Valencia".
Next, he put a stop to celebrating the victory, stressing that… "It's very important to continue fighting, because it's still very early to claim that anything is won. We are experienced, our players are experienced and know that still have a long way to go and that's why we need to remain focused continue working hard.
"That's why I'm enjoying Olympiacos..."
Kostas Papanikolaou wasn't only enjoying his time on the floor. He was also when talking to the Press, when he revealed why he enjoys Olympiacos! "From the beginning of the season, the team is in a weird situation due to the injuries. In every game, we have to find different way to stop the opponents, or our players get to play two and three positions. The most important thing, the best one and what makes me enjoy this team is that whatever is asked from any of us, we are ready to deliver. Maybe what we deliver is not perfect, but we'll be doing the best we can. And that's the true spirit of a team. Being asked to do something, do it, keep a low profile, try to do the best you can and make your coach happy, your team happy, by your effort and the teams'".
The 27 year old forward was the MVP of the game; however, he calls the team the MVP… "I always have the will to play. I still want to talk about the team. Olympiacos has been working so as to be exploiting whoever is at the best condition at any given moment. No one is looking at personal stats. We always try to find the player that is open, who has a good day, who is in the best position… We are always looking for the best option. That's why, apart from the usual steady performances, you get to have a different protagonist in any one game. Guarding Green is extremely difficult. He still got to score 26. He's a very good and versatile offensive player. You do the best you can. And if he gets to score, then he at least would have to take tough shots or take too many shots".
On the play when he ran to encourage Janis Strelnieks following an air-ball on a shot for three, he said: "This is something that comes from within you and that's how it came from me, but from all the guys as well. This is what a team means. During such a long season, there are definitely going to be hard times. Maybe one player has a tough night. These small details help maintain a good atmosphere within the team. Feeling good around one another. Feel in harmony and next time I'm facing a situation like that I'm certain that Janis and all the guys are going to be doing something of the kind and help me give the team my best".