By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
After two matches in Monaco, the series is tied. Fifth-seeded Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv won the first game, but Sasa Obradovic‘s squad responded through Jordan Loyd’s career night and got the ‘W’ before moving to Tel Aviv.
Games 3 and 4 are coming on Tuesday (02/05) and Thursday (04/05), and fourth-seeded AS Monaco’s head coach knows what awaits his team in Menora Mivtachim, where only Barcelona and Crvena Zvezda succeeded in the regular season.
“The electricity and tension at the end of the game that we experienced in the regular season at Maccabi is preparation for Game 3 and what awaits us there. We will have to be smart enough not to react to provocations. If you want to win, you have to be focused on yourself and the game. For most of the players on the team, this will be the most important game of their career. But it won’t be the same game as the regular season. We controlled the first three quarters before losing. We will have to be strong in the head,” Obradovic said.
The experienced Yakuba Ouattara, who scored 12 points in a Game 2 win, believes Monaco can succeed on the road, even though Maccabi has a 15-2 EuroLeague record in front of their fans.
“We are expecting a big fight; we are going there with confidence. The mind and the heart will make the difference. When we play the right way, we can beat everyone. Maccabi is formidable at home but not invincible,” Ouattara stated.
Kattash: “It’s going to be a very intense, very physical game”
Maccabi’s head coach Oded Kattash predicts another exciting duel. The first one was marked by Wade Baldwin’s leadership and Monaco’s crazy inability to make buckets from afar, while Loyd stole the show in a series-tying victory in Game 2 with 33 points.
“We are excited for the game, to come back and play in front of our fans. We are sure it’s going to be a crazy atmosphere, and we need it; we need the fans’ energy. It’s going to be a very intense, very physical game. Hopefully, we will come out and play to win and play with confidence to execute our plan. And we are excited. It’s going to be a tough matchup for both teams and a very interesting game,” Kattash said.
Jarell Martin invites a more aggressive approach and believes details will be decisive.
“We have to come back at them more aggressively… Making the extra plays, and doing the little things, will bring more rewards in the end. Getting more offensive rebounds, being more physical on the defensive end, but in a way that it’s not hurting us with the fouls. But just doing the little things that reward us, in the end, will be a big factor for us,” Martin concluded.