The Reds put the clamps on Zalgiris late on to secure the victory
'Unbelievable' defense proved key as Olympiacos grabbed first win
On the occasion of registering its first win of the season, there was a lot less-than-usual satisfaction in Piraeus after Olympiacos held off Zalgiris Kaunas, 74-68, on Friday night.
Any fan who might have watched only the opening 13 minutes of the game, or anyone who heard Zalgiris head coach Andrea Trinchieri say that Olympiacos "played an unbelievable game on defense" could find such a lack of satisfaction a bit strange.
Olympiacos allowed just 7 points in the first 13 minutes and led 23-7 at that point, then it had an 18-point margin shortly after. Zalgiris was forced into 3 turnovers in less than the opening 80 seconds, and Zalgiris already turned the ball over 5 times in less than five minutes. The visitors had just 1 assist in the first half, too.
However, Olympiacos also allowed 12 offensive rebounds in the first half, and 18 for the night. Georgios Bartzokas is unlikely to be happy with the fact that the Reds committed 19 turnovers and only shot 4 for 17 from long range, too.
It all led to a resilient Zalgiris fighting all the way back.
"We were leading continuously by 10, 12, 14 points, and we had so many easy decisions, selections to take, to finish the game early," Olympiacos head coach Georgios Bartzokas said in a EuroLeague TV interview after the game. "We didn’t."
As a matter of fact, Zalgiris won each of the last three quarters and closed the margin to 67-65 in the penultimate minute.
"We made some rushed decisions, we were anxious, we were nervous and somehow the game was tight until the end," Bartzokas pointed out.
But Olympiacos survived because it did have its defense and, importantly, had Sasha Vezenkov and Evan Fournier make big baskets.
"We have to get better", Fournier said. "It wasn't the best win, but a win is a win."
This early in the season, it is just a matter of stacking them, no matter how they come.
"I feel great because we won," Bartzokas stated, adding. "It is early in the season, we need to improve a lot."