An easy victory against Bayern
Olympiacos bested Bayern 89-72, for the 20th day of the Euroleague.
The German team took advantage of the bad choices of the 'reds' and got to lead by 6 (3-9) at 5'. Olympiacos pressured when defending, had patience moving the ball when attacking and despite poor perimeter percentages (1/7 threes in the first ten minutes) closed the first quarter leading 17-14 (the score was written by Wade Baldwin with the only good three up to that moment).
With consistently good defense and Brandon Paul leading the offense, our team took the difference to +11 (37-26 at 18'). However, Bayern replied with a 6-0 streak and got to close in 37-32, at the completion of the first half.
In the second half and for about five minutes, Olympiacos lost all contact with the basket… Back to back turnovers, terrible offensive choices and the good perimeter percentages of the Germans, where the elements that turned the situation around and brought Bayern to +5 (37-42). Relying on Lucic, the German team got to lead by 6 (43-49) at 27'.
Bartzokas' players improved their defensive performance, Printezis and Milutinov won the battle in the post, when at the same time, Koniaris and Vezenkov were striking from behind the three point line. All of that was translated into a 18-4 partial, thanks to which our team got to lead with 8 (61-53 at 32').
And it didn't stop there… Sasha Vezenkov continued executing from the three point line, Rubit did a great job under the rim, as well as from behind the 6.75m. arc (with 2 out of 3 from that position) and Olympiacos sent the difference sky high (+20, 86-66 a 39'), deciding the victory.
* Vassilis Charalampopoulos debuted in said game with the 'red' shirt!
The quarters: 17-14, 37-32, 54-53, 89-72.
Οlympiacos (Bartzokas): Rochestie 2 (12 assists), Baldwin 10 (2), Paul 10 (1 3p., 2 as.) Charalampopoulos, Κoniaris 10 (2), Spanoulis 6 (1), Μilutinov 6 (5 reb,), Vezenkov 20 (5 3p., 5 reb.), Printezis 10 (6 reb., 2 st.), Papanikolaou 1, Rubit 14 (2)
Bayern Munich (Kostic): Bray 15 (2), Koponen 8 (2), Monroe 11, Lucic 15 (3), Lo 8(2), Zipser 5, Barthel 5 (1), Lessort, Huestis 5 (1), Radosevic
"Congratulations to the team and the fans"
Giorgos Bartzokas : "I would like to congratulate my team and our fans on tonight's game. It was a victory we needed. We all won together. It was a warm atmosphere at the gym and I would like to pin point that. Our team has many ups and downs and we want to get back on a winning path and we need this supportive atmosphere. Usually, or rather never I get to talk about any specific player, but I would like to talk about Rochestie tonight. He passed 12 assists in a very short time and with the unselfish way he played, he helped us a lot to win the game. Bayern is a very strong team, they are the Champions of their National League. We have respect for them. We should have played good defense to win tonight. Especially at the post up defense, which is their key took to facilitate ".
Asked abot what changed and the 'reds' appeared better, he replied: "Nothing's changed… There is a daily routine within teams and we simply have had two more days to practice with some defensive principles we've been trying to instill, which are totally different to what the team used to play before. According to my philosophy, as well as to how this team can become more effective when defending. Of course, momentum plays a role, the opponent as well… When the game against Alba began, we were soft in defense, we were sluggish, but they were also making all their shots. When you receive so many shots, the opponent gains confidence and you become hesitant. This did not happen tonight and it was a combination of both. I think this team has potential. The positive thing is we gave minutes to everyone and there were a lot of players that scored".
When told that there were two upsets within the same game, he commented: "No, I didn't see it that way. My job is to insist on the technical aspect of the game. On how we are supposed to be playing the games and how we deal with co-operations. Especially at this particular moment when I'm not really able to understand what exactly the mentality or the drawbacks for each player are. There are players that are fazed by anything and others that are more vulnerable. Also, there are veterans and others less experienced. Euroleague is a very tough League. It's not only that you need to know who your opponent is; you need to be able to cope with the physicality of the game. You need to be ready. It's a tough league, there's physical contact and some guys lose concentration due to this. We are going to be getting better gradually. It was simply a game we should have won and nothing more".
About the debut of Vassilis Charalampopoulos: "There's no one that knows Greek basketball and doesn't know that Vassilis is talented. Now he's going through an adjustment period because he had been with Ionikos, where he was getting minutes and now he's with our team that has back to back games. That means that he needs to be taking minutes in practice and realize how we play. My opinion is that he needs to up the speed he plays at, because speed in the Euroleague is higher than in the Greek League. However, we all know he has great potential and of course a very good basketball mind, which is important".
When asked to pinpoint where Olympiacos' better reaction is due compared to that in the game against Alba, he replied: "To be honest, I don't have a clue. It has to do with the eternal process each player is having, how much he thinks about what he needs to improve. The players that play at this level are clever and have the intelligence to understand what's needed. Some cope and some don't. It's early for me to understand them as well. But you also understand that ups and downs for players that are new with the league are only normal. The team has changed three coaches and ten players. Homogeny is totally disturbed due to all of that. It's not easy for them and they have excuses. It's simply though that in professional basketball there's no excuse for losing, that's why we need to fight every game to win".
Asked on whether he believes that his team still has a chance to make the TOP8, he replied: "Of course I believe that. But I'm going to say again, we can't be talking about the playoffs at this point. It's still too early. If you take a look at tonight's results, you are going to see that there is no concept of normal or expected results. Everyone can win at any court. All teams, have some time during the season, maybe twice or even three times, that their performance drops. Crvena Zvezda won four games in a row and now they have lost two consecutive games. There's no team to escape this rule. Especially teams that also play for their National Leagues. So it's only good that we focus on the next game and see what we come up with at the end".