Bartzokas: «We are optimistic»
Giorgos Bartzokas expressed with satisfaction about the way his players handled pressure during the game with Villeurbanne.
Initially, he commented the French fans, by saying... "Allow me to express my feelings in regard to the wonderful atmosphere in this new fantastic arena. During a tough period for Villeurbanne with the Euroleague, they have these fans that absolutely support the local team in all its games. They are a good example of how we should be dealing with sports".
Talking about the game, he said: "For us, it was a must win game. It's the first round and we still happened to have such a game. We had to hand the pressure, play as a team and win. We were leading throughout the game. We played a good group game for most of the time, we passed the ball a lot, we had 24 assists. We had players that helped us in many different moments in the game. I have to talk about Fall, who had 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 8 blocks. He helped us a lot to win. Of course, other players also contributed into controlling the game, despite having some difficult moments. I can remember Lee's buzzer beater, that was a four-point play, a triple and one. Moments like these can change the psychology and give confidence to the team that is trying to come back to the game. We absolutely appreciate the win. We have one more road game against Alba next week to finish the first round and we are optimistic. Our team now has all its players available and the only thing we need is to find our shape and play as a team, the way we want to play. I wish all the best to Villeurbanne's coach, Gianmarco Pozzecco and of ourse to Villeurbanne".
Asked about Moustapha Fall's performance, he said: "Since he came to our team, two years ago, has obviously been one of the main reasons Olympiacos has won all the domestic titles and has qualified for two final fours. Last year we made the final and 'Mous' had a huge impact on that, not only with the way he's been playing in every game, but also with how he thinks about basketball. He doesn't play selfishly. He plays to win and for his team. It's very rare to watch someone block the ball 8 timers and even more so, a player of 2.21m. dishing so many assists. He's got the whole package and he's very important. At the same time, he's humble and a very important piece of our team".