By Stefan Acevski/ info@eurohoops.net
Valencia and Panathinaikos will face each other in the EuroLeague quarterfinals after the Greek team defeated Monaco at home in the Play-In round.
This means that Valencia, the second seed from the regular season, and Panathinaikos, the seventh seed, will compete for a spot in the Final Four. It also means new showdowns between Ergin Ataman and Pedro Martinez.
After the recent match between the two teams in Valencia, which the Spaniards won convincingly (102-84), there were interesting words exchanged between the two coaches at the press conferences.
It was the same this time, and before the start of the series, Martinez responded to Ataman.
“Even if his resume is better and he’s a better coach than me, that’s not going to be enough for them to beat us. They’re going to have to put other things on the table.”
Before Martinez, Ataman spoke to the media, highlighting that Valencia has a better coach this season.
“They (Valencia) have a better coach this season. This season my performance isn’t enough, so far. Now, we’ll see where we get to.”
The two teams will play two games in Spain, on Tuesday and Thursday, and then the series will move to Athens, returning to Valencia for a fifth game if needed.