By Alex Molina / info@eurohoops.net
Real Madrid closed the EuroLeague double-game week with a second defeat, after losing to Panathinaikos.
Their first loss at the Movistar Arena, which leaves them with a 5–6 record, came after absolute dominance from the Greek side, and Real Madrid coach Scariolo assessed it this way immediately after the game ended.
As he said, “They are a great team, incredibly good at the 1 and 2 positions. The first half was quite bad defensively; we allowed too many drives. In the second half, we played better, but the burden was too heavy to overcome a team like Panathinaikos.”
A bit later in the press room, the Italian coach congratulated Panathinaikos “for the signing of Kenneth Faried, who was key once again in his second straight game,” before stressing once more that “we played an excellent second half, with aggressiveness. Unfortunately, we carried too heavy a backpack after the first half, and we couldn’t control their ball handlers. We did a more than acceptable job on Nunn, but Shorts and Sloukas were fantastic. They have three of the best scorers and excellent ball handlers. But in the second half, we did a great job, and it was the same players. We have to understand that against this kind of players and teams, we must be the ones to land the first blow.”
As the Italian coach stated, if Real Madrid wants to win titles, they will have to face the best. “Humbly, we have to compete in those positions against the best players in the competition. We need to show pride and not just in one-on-one situations, but as a team. We have to be self-critical. This is the pace of this competition, and we must understand that this will happen again. It is what it is, and we have to know how to respond.”
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