Bartzokas: "We must be ready for the playoffs"

Olympiacos ‘embraced’ the absolute home advantage, however, the coach of Olympiacos, Giorgos Bartzokas, maintained a low profile following the win at the OAKA.

“Congratulations to our team, our players, for the very good defensive game we played. Panathinaikos scored 62 points. We gave them the shots we wanted to give them, we pushed where we didn’t want them to shoot and we overall stayed true to our defensive plan that actually gave us the win. We did what we had to do to win the game as well as home court advantage. We are happy. Now I have to tell everyone and also stress that this was not a win that gives a title. As you know, everything is decided in the playoffs and we need to be ready then. Of course we should not stray from our philosophy. We are now getting ready for the game against Promitheas. All else will come if we keep working right”.

Asked if winning derbies is a result of defense or offense, he replied: “All coaches, not just I, look at both. For the level we are talking about here, I don’t think there is any one coach that pays attention to only to the defensive or the offensive part of a game. We have good defensive players, they can guard good guards, but we also have a good team plan in defense. In some games you need to score a lot, in others the rhythm is different. I had read statements that the opponent had targeted this game as very decisive and critical, playing with the support of their fans. We like the fact that we won, either by scoring 102 points at the SEF or 68 tonight. The important thing is to win in every way available”.