Bartzokas: «As if we were playing an exhibition game»
In his opening statements at the press conference following Olympiacos’ defeat to Virtus Bologna in Italy, Giorgos Bartzokas said:
“I would like to congratulate Virtus on the win. They fought until the very last possession. The 20 offensive rebounds they scored say it all, and for us, this was a game in which we should have been extremely careful about how we approached it. We allowed 33 points in the first quarter without committing a single foul to prevent them from getting layups. I think it was as if we had come to play an exhibition game. It looked like we were happy with our previous road wins, and our mentality was not good enough against a team that desperately wanted the victory. The defensive rebounds we gave up, as well as Fournier’s turnover after the defensive rebound at the end, when we were up by one and in possession of the ball, were decisive. In any case, we have to analyze the game and understand that scoring 100+ points in today’s basketball is not enough. You have to be tough defensively, and we need to find the players who are ready to fight for every possession as if it were the last possession of the game.”
Asked about the passion Virtus showed against the European champions, the Olympiacos coach said: “This is a situation we have to deal with throughout the entire season. Every team wants to beat us because we are the European champions. They play without much pressure, and that is why they started the game making almost every shot. But this is a situation we will face in almost every game. Our opponents have extra motivation, and we have to stay together and be solid defensively. Of course, sometimes, because of our quality, even though we are not as good statistically and we give up rebounds, we have the ability to win certain games. Was it a lucky shot at the end? Or a shot taken off balance? It may have been. But when you start the game and allow your opponents to gain confidence from the very first minute, then you have to expect that to have an impact at the end. We have to dominate through our quality, but if you don't play defense, if you don't win the 50-50 balls, then you will have problems.”
Regarding his motivation following last season’s success and what it means to coach Olympiacos, Bartzokas said: “Any coach who is in the EuroLeague is a great competitor. None of the coaches here want to lose. At Olympiacos, we have reached five consecutive Final Fours and won many domestic titles. Having motivation in every practice and every game is our job, and we have to be committed to it. First of all, we have to convince everyone that Olympiacos is not a team you play for the sake of playing. You always play to win. As for me, I am more motivated than ever. We have made a huge investment from the club’s owners, and that investment was not made because of what happened last year, but because of what needs to happen this year.”