Bartzokas: "Neither our energy nor our mentality were at 100%"

Olympiacos claimed a 103 - 87 victory over Iraklis and remained alone at the top of the Stoiximan Greek Basket League standings, maintaining a perfect 5–0 record in the competition. After the game, head coach Giorgos Bartzokas spoke about the difficulty of staying fully focused following a demanding EuroLeague double week.

In his opening remarks, he said: “First of all, congratulations to Iraklis, because with the way they played, they helped make it a very entertaining game. They played very well offensively; not so much defense wise. We got carried away, and the game quickly turned into an offensive showcase; a ‘you score, we score’ type of game with the score going up fast. As I mentioned earlier on the host channel's broadcast, after two tough games on Wednesday and Friday, both physically and mentally, it’s difficult to stay fully focused and 100% sharp in every possession. That’s the reality; we managed it the way we managed it, and we won the game. Now we have three or four important practices before Friday’s match. I wish Sotiris Karapostolou and Iraklis all the best going forward.”

Later, when asked about Evan Fournier’s strong performance, Bartzokas commented: “I believe Evan Fournier has already proven throughout his career who he is. He doesn’t need one good quarter against Iraklis for us to realize he’s a great player. He simply found some motivation because he was competing with an opponent and got ‘angry’, in a sporting sense, which helped him find his rhythm a bit. A player with his résumé has great self-confidence and belief in himself. Very soon, he’ll reach a high level and so will the whole team.”