Olympiacos entered the series vs Monaco as the favorite to get its first EuroLeague Final-Four appearance since 2017. In Game 1, the No.2 seed put up the defensive work to walk out of the matchup with the victory.
Even when the offense wasn’t there, the “Reds” had their defense to lean in, allowing just 39 points in the last three quarters of the game. The home side put the clamps in Mike James with Thomas Walkup chasing him all over the court.
Walkup was an important part of Olympiacos’ plan to stop Monaco’s pick n’ roll collaboration between James and Donta Hall. James shot 2-of-7 from deep, finishing with 10 points and four turnovers.
“I think our defense was really solid the whole game. [Thomas] Walkup did an excellent job, but as a team we protected our basket,” Olympiacos head coach Giorgos Bartzokas said after the EuroLeague clash.
“We didn’t allow transitions or the two-point shots they are very strong at. They usually score a lot of shots inside the box. So, we did a great job.”
Vasilije Micic-Shane Larkin show class in Game 1 vs Milan
Vasilije Micic and Shane Larkin headspeared Anadolu Efes to a huge win in Mediolanum Forum to steal the home-court advantage from Olimpia Milano in EuroLeague Game 1 of the playoffs. The reigning champions showed why the no.5 seed in the regular season did not mean anything for a team with a winning pedigree.
While the entire Efes squad showed out in the defensive end as Milan scored just 48 points to set a new postseason low in the EuroLeague, Larkin and Micic led the team offensively. The two superstar guards combined for a PIR of 28 having 32 points, nine rebounds and eight assists combined.
“In these games you just gotta do all the small things: dive for loose balls, get rebounds and really focus on the strengths of the other team,” Larkin said. “We did a great job tonight on the defensive end. We gave up 48 points so we just gotta keep locking in on that side and I think we’ll be alright.”
Fabien Causer leads Real Madrid with shooting masterclass
Real Madrid took a critical step in the direction that could lead to EuroLeague Final-Four thanks to Fabien Causer, who scored a season-high 20 points Wednesday night. ‘Los Blancos’ needed all of those points to stop the red-hot Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Causer shot 3-of-5 from two-point range and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc as Madrid finished the contest with 16 made threes in 29 attemtps. They also shot 46 percent from 2-point range in the game.
Maccabi could not handle Real’s offense and allowed 84 points, as the Israelis have remained winless in WiZink Arena since 2010. Madrid hosts Game 2 on Friday as it seeks to reach its eighth Final Four since 2011.
“It was very hard in the fourth quarter, we had 5 or 6 minutes in which we struggled a little bit to find solutions on offense, but I think our defense gave us opportunities to win the game,” Causer said after the game.
Yorumlar