A heavyweight finale to the regular season will see Olympiacos (21-12) battle for the hope of keeping its slender top-four ambitions alive with a visit from a Fenerbahce (20-13) team that can no longer fight for that prize.
Sarunas Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce: 'A very difficult opponent'
Seasons
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 34 of 34
Group Regular Season
w
w
w
w
l
l
l
w
l
w
Fenerbahce prevailed in their Round 6 showdown in Istanbul, with 15 points from Georgios Papagiannis helping ensure a 79-77 triumph. But Olympiacos has a new weapon in the paint since then, with mid-season arrival Moses Wright showing his value by pouring in a personal best 20 points to lead last week's victory over Zvezda. The Reds boast the league's best defensive record, with just 74.8 points allowed per game, and will have to particularly focus on perimeter defense against a Fenerbahce team that leads the league in three-point shooting accuracy (39.5%), led by Scottie Wilbekin who has at least four triples in five of the last six games.
Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos head coach
"Fenerbahce is currently playing very well, based on results. They shoot the same number of two-pointers and three-pointers, which is peculiar. They have 5-6 players who play with great confidence - Wilbekin, Biberovic, Sanli, Hayes-Davis, they all have good numbers, shoot a lot and play well. In general, they improved their offensive numbers since Saras came in. It is a team that creates problems from the three-point line. Papagiannis and Sanli both shoot the ball well. That’s we must play team defense in order to stop them."
Sarunas Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce head coach
"We are facing a very difficult opponent in Piraeus. Coming off some tough losses, it is important for us to compete well and to start playing Fenerbahce basketball again before the Playoffs. That is the biggest objective of this game. Obviously Olympiacos is a great defensive team, making things very difficult with changing defenses and guard pressure. There is a lot to deal with their player and ball movement, and obviously, Moustapha Fall’s low-post game."
Moustapha Fall, Olympiacos player
"It is going to be a difficult game. We play against a good team, well-coached. We will definitely give our all for the win, but it definitely going to be a fight. The gym will be packed again and we will try to do our best, so we celebrate with our fans one more win. We really don’t care who we will play against at the playoffs. We really don’t have any preference."
Dyshawn Pierre, Fenerbahce player
"Obviously a very important game. They have been playing very well lately. As being the last game of the regular season, it will be good to fight for having better momentum before the Playoffs. We definitely want to get back in shape."