Bartzokas and Milutinov on game 3
Olympiacos will host Barcelona tomorrow (30/04, 20:30 CET) in a packed SEF aiming to gain a 2-1 lead in the playoff series.
Talking about tomorrow's game, the coach of Olympiacos, Giorgos Bartzokas, said: "We may have differentiations. If you mean that a top performance by any one player can decide the game, or about team reaction or on the other hand, inactivity. That's how the playoffs are. Players are people, not machines. So, a lot depends on the human factor. What's certain is that it's going to be intense, just like in the previous two games, physicality, contacts, and all of that, that are always the norm in playoff games".
Asked about possible absentees, he replied: "Petrusevn is just fine. Papanikolaou practiced for the first time with the team yesterday and seems to lack strength. He doesn't need to play for 30 minutes, but he will definitely be in the bench and I believe he will help us".
About the many lost rebounds and the turnovers, he stressed: "Turnovers have to do with execution in offense. We saw what we need to improve. Rebounds are all about physicality. When a player goes for the rebound among three other players he shows to be ready and willing to fight. We must be in good physical and mental condition to grab those balls. We made mistakes in the first game, but in general, we got to control the game. I remind you we were playing in a court that rarely sees defeats. We were controlling the game throughout and we could have won easier. I think that in the second game, we thought that we had done what was expected from us and relaxed mentally. Of course we wanted to win, we tried, but we did not show the same level of intensity in our decision making and in our game compared to the first game".
Finally, about the importance of home court advantage: “I think that our fans will help us. That’s why everyone is talking about the importance of the home court and how much it helps. You play in familiar environment, with ease, having your fans by your side. Of course it’s important and we are grateful to have it. That’s what actually teams have been fighting for for 34 games. For home court if they make the playoffs. Somehow, we got it back. We didn’t win it in the regular season, but we now have brought the series where we ideally wanted it to be. We have the opportunity not to focus on a whole series, on two games, just on tomorrow’s one and be ready to fight for every possession, be compact on both ends of the floor, stay within our plan and control our emotions, all the things that are always important in the playoffs.
On his part, Nikola Milutinov, said the following: “Even if I only play a little, I will support the team because it’s playoff time. It has to do more with the team rather than with any particular player. We have to stick together and do whatever we can to win the game. That’s the most important thing right now”.
Asked about the key to winning the game, he said: “We fought more in the first game, fought for every challenged ball. In the second game though, I don’t know, maybe we were tired, but we didn’t do that. In front of our fans and with their amazing support, we’ll have to play even better than in the first game. We must do all we can to win”.
Finally, about the fact that Barcelona dominated the post and if he and the rest of his team’s big players must differentiate something with their game, he pointed out: “Barcelona has a quality team, they attack the post strong. We definitely need to do a better job, especially with rebounding. It’s a pity that happened in the previous game because we have a big and very good roster. That’s one of the key factors we have to improve on tomorrow”.