Bartzokas, Papanikolaou, Vezenkov talk about the Greek Cup Final8

Olympiacos trained on Wednesday afternoon (12/02) at the auxiliary field of the Indoor Gymnasium of Nea Alikarnassos, ahead of the Cup quarterfinal against Karditsa (20:15).

During the media day before the start of the tournament, the coach of the Piraeus team, Giorgos Bartzokas, clarified that the consecutive wins in the Euroleague are a separate chapter for the team, which now faces a different challenge.

In his initial statement, the Greek coach said: "Each competition is different, with different conditions, different teams, and often different coaches. We are here to win, first of all, the first game, to reach the final, and to win it, but as always, we will take it step by step. The next game is tomorrow (against Karditsa, 19:15 CET), and we will aim to play these games with as much intensity as possible, because otherwise, there will be a gap of 4-5 days, and if you don't play these games with intensity, you won't be ready for the final"

Asked whether he plans to rotate the squad in the quarterfinal: "Obviously, we will prepare a plan together with the staff for these games. It's a series of games. And we believe in the roster we have (we have 7 foreigners here); we may rotate even within that. In general, all players need to play, and we will share the minutes. Not because it's necessary, but because they are good players, and everyone needs to get playing time."

Regarding the Hellenic Basketball Federation (EOK) event: "I found it very interesting. It was nice, simple, and quick. It’s unexpectedly cold here, compared to the usual weather in Crete."

On the team's momentum and the consecutive wins in the Euroleague: "I don’t think our Euroleague streak matters at all. Also, what we did in the past years doesn’t matter. What we've done in the Euroleague has no significance; here, the games are different, the motivation is different, the conditions are different. We hope to contribute, both as a team and with the help of our fans, to make something really special happen. First, we need to play well as a team and behave properly in the stands, as is expected in these types of competitions."

Papanikolaou: «We'll give it all to win the title once again"

The team captain, Kostas Papanikolaou, commented on the coincidence of the 50th anniversary of the Cup and the 100th anniversary of the club: "It’s nice that the 50th anniversary of the Cup coincides with the 100th anniversary of Olympiacos, but the job needs to be done on the court. It's a title we want, we want it every year, we fight for all titles every year. That’s our job, that’s what we want, that’s what our fans want, and once again, we are ready to give it our all to win the title again."

Vezenkov: «We are here to give 100%»

Finally, Sasha Vezenkov, when asked about the team's readiness to compete for their second title of the year, emphasized: "We are ready, it’s important for us, we have to face a game every day. This is how we approach it to reach our goal, and everyone here will give 100% to achieve the second goal of the season."

Asked about the possibility of the team playing 3 games within four days: "That’s the format, we are ready. In the past, we’ve played 3 games in 3 days. We know how it is, we’ve prepared accordingly, and every day we need to give 100%, without underestimating anyone, and reach our goal."

Regarding the club’s 100th anniversary and whether it serves as extra motivation: "Definitely, for the club and for us, it’s very important. And as I said, when you play for Olympiacos, you always aim to win all the titles."