CSKA vs. Panathinaikos Athens: 91-75 (+16)
Jonas Kazlauskas, CSKA head coach:
I am very satisfied with our team and I am thankful to the fans for the tremendous support which become an important factor for our success. I am happy with the way we fought, we defended. It seems like it was first time on my memory when we had 4 or 5 jump ball situations in the fourth quarter despite having big advantage. The example of self-dedication was showed by our veterans – Siskauskas and Khryapa. It was nice to see how our ‘bigs’ led by Kaun and Krstic fought under the baskets, how ‘small’ players defended on perimeter, how the reserves helped us. There were some concerns about our physical shape, especially for the National Team players. The team is on decline, the break is needed, so we wait for the Christmas holidays. Besides, Gordon injured his foot today and he will probably stay out until the New Year. At the same time we are not about giving up in the last game of the regular championship.
Zeljko Obradovic, Panathinaikos head coach:
My congratulations to CSKA, not only because of victory, but because of excellent game they played. It is easy to recognize that the start of second half was crucial: CSKA had 14-0 run in less than 3 minutes. We tried to get back to the game, but it was impossible because of the quality CSKA showed. We allowed too many easy points, we forgot our rules of playing against fast breaks and did not show the character needed to fight for the win. It is obvious that we are missing two key players – Tsartsaris and Perperoglou. After the New Year we will see if they are able to com back, because with them we will be a different team.
