A 5-0 winning record

Olympiacos passed victoriously from Peristeri reaching a 5-0 winning record for the Greek League and sharing the top ranking spot with Panionios.

Giorgos Bartzokas’ players went into the game high spirited and focused and gained a small lead which was at times either a little above or below ten points. However, in the beginning of the fourth quarter the team relaxed its efforts and Peristeri closed in at three, threatening the Piraeus team.

A three by Stratos Perperoglou and continuous good defense by the ‘reds’ broadened the margin once again giving the guests a comfortable victory.

Τhe quarters: 20-29, 38-49, 58-71, 78-92.
PERISTERI (Κoustenis): Papantoniou 17 (1), Kombodietas 2, Thorn 15 (1), Kanonidis, Jones 7 (1), Mantzaris 18 (2), Williams 2, Hines 10, Petroulas 4, Melissaratos, Psaropoulos 3 (1), Lakkas.
ΟLYMPIACOS (Bartzokas): Hines 12, Law 2, Spanoulis 14 (3), Perperoglou 12 (1), Sloukas 6, Mavroeidis 4, Gecevisius 3 (1), Powell 4, Printezis 22 (1), Papanikolaou 6, Μantzaris 7 (1).

GIORGOS BARTZOKAS: “It was obvious from the way we were playing, that we thought the game was one of procedure. It wasn’t the case though, since Peristeri was combative from the largest part of the game. We got serious in the end, when we were almost in view of danger. We player a couple of minutes of good defense, although we were bad as a total in that area. It’s a good lesson for us, to understand that we can’t leave the game at any point.

The opponent always plays a role, and they played very well tonight. It’s always that after a win, you practice worse than following a defeat. We are a little confused, since we have to incorporate a player. I don’t know if this played its part, but the sure thing is we didn’t play well”.

About Josh Powell: “He’s a very structured person, a different player than Dorsey. He can play together with all of our big guys, but it’s been years since he last played in Europe and he needs time to adjust. I’m happy with his effort and I think he’s going to help us”.

ΚYLE HINES: “As a total, we are happy with the win. Our rivals played with heart, while we had been kind of loose and this is obvious from the mistakes we’ve made. We have to continued working and improve. For me, tonight’s game was kind of special, since I have had the chance to play against my brother, who played a rather good game. It was a special game indeed, since many of our players have started their careers from Peristeri, like Mantzaris and Mavroeidis”.

For the bet he placed against his brother: “He sleeps in the couch anyway and he obviously wanted to play well to sleep in the bed”.

JIM KOUSTENIS: “The name of the guest team gave us extra motivation. We were aware of our weaknesses and of the fact that Olympiacos has a full roster. The way to cope was to give 110% and I would like to congratulate everyone. They were all giving energy, even from the bench. We did not let ourselves be the punching bag and remained combative for 37 minutes. If we take out the first quarter, we lost by one basket, a fact that proves we can sustain. We don’t fly in the clouds. Hard work comes first and we need to take advantage of the boost our fans give us in our home court.

The bet for all of us with Peristeri is to present a competitive roster and to have the fans return to the gym. A full gym will make it tough for anyone to beat us here. Apart from the financial stabilization of the team and staying with the big category, our big bet is for the fans to come back to the gym”.

TYLER HINES: “We had the chance to play strong. We work hard in practices. We try to improve and we do. And we will try to continue like this. For me, it definitely was a special game. My brother and I had never played against each other. My brother asked for travelling to escape sleeping in the couch? I guess that’s what he wanted, but eventually, I’ll end up sleeping in his bed. Probably I’ll be the one describing the game to our parents.”

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