By Eurohoops Team / info@eurohoops.net
After Barcelona defeated Anadolu Efes in Istanbul, scoring 107 points and tying a EuroLeague record with 19 three-pointers, the coach of the hosts, Ergin Ataman, made an interesting comparison.
As he said: “Only in the first quarter, we played a regular game. Especially in the second period after the bench players came in the game, we played terrible basketball. Barcelona played like Golden State tonight. They played very good basketball, but when we went down, we gave up.”
Barcelona’s coach Pesic when asked about Thomas Huertel and the 19 threes he added: “Statistics speak for themselves. As I said, when we find a rhythm on the defense, we find self-confidence on the offense. Especially for this team, this is the situation. When my players have confidence in the 1-on-1 defense, this reflects the offense and they can play more aggressively. We played as a team and made good decisions. However, we could not make it if it was not for our performance on the defensive end. You should defend well and grab the defensive rebounds. For example, Moerman grabbed 8 rebounds in the first half.”
However, he didn’t want to make a comment on Barcelona’s progress following his arrival: “I am not ready to analyze the past. I do not have much time to think about the past right now. I can focus on today. Since the first day I came here, we have built a very good communication. We’ve had really good communication with both technical and medical staff. From the very first moment, we have a transparent relationship. We have always been considering how to improve ourselves both individually and as a team. Of course, it was a confidence boost for everyone that I signed with Barcelona. My players’ reaction following Copa Del Rey was particularly great. Surely the more we win, the easier it gets for us to prepare the next game.”
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