By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
To begin the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season, Baskonia has only won one game, losing four and standing second-to-last alongside Crvena Zvezda and ALBA Berlin.
After losing 95-81 on the road against Panathinaikos, Joan Peñarroya spoke to Radio Vitoria to comment on the Basque team’s current mood, updating his status as head coach of the Basque team. “I will do my job, I will continue to work as long as I have a job. I am not used to all this, but I remain calm. This week has been difficult not only for me but for the whole team”, he commented about his potential replacement with Dusko Ivanovic coming back to Vitoria.
The former San Pablo Burgos head coach, winning back-to-back Basketball Champions League titles in 2020 and 2021, went on talking about his players. “The team stayed together. I am grateful and proud of the efforts of my players, coaching staff, assistants, physios, and even media people”, he also said before addressing the situation even more.
After a pretty balanced encounter in OAKA, Baskonia suffered a 25-15 run in the fourth quarter against Mathias Lessort and his teammates. “Even though we had problems before the match, we competed well against a good team. We needed more energy in the last 10 minutes. It was obvious that we were tired in those minutes”, the 54-year-old head coach.
After starting the season 1-4, Baskonia is set to face Partizan Belgrade on November 3 at 20:30 CET at home. In the ACB League, the Basque team is 4th with a 4-2 record, tied with UCAM Murcia and Surne Bilbao Basket. They’re set to visit MoraBanc Andorra on October 29 at 17:00 CET.
PHOTO CREDIT: Turkish Airlines EuroLeague