Victory is the only acceptable outcome for two teams just outside the playoffs places as Zvezda (13-17) hosts Valencia (14-16). The Spanish side has suffered a dip in form at exactly the wrong time, losing five of its last six games. Zvezda, meanwhile, showed it has not given up hope of climbing into the top eight by grabbing a determined home win over Baskonia last week with swarming defense. Zvezda faces elimination should it lose this game, while Valencia's chances of making the playoffs would be reduced considerably with another defeat.
Pre-Game quotes: Zvezda vs. Valencia
Seasons
3 Mins read
Regular Season
Round 31 of 34
Group Regular Season
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Dusko Ivanovic, Zvezda head coach
"The health condition in our team is better. More or less all the players have recovered, some are quite exhausted, they still have consequences from a virus. We'll see tonight at training, then tomorrow we'll decide who will play." We hope we can win and we'll try to neutralize Valencia shooters and their game in transition."
Alex Mumbru, Valencia head coach
"It is a tough challenge in a difficult arena, where we know their numbers increase substantially. They will try to exploit all their options to get into the playoffs, just like us. We want to be able to stop them on defense, and get into our offensive rhythm, which we ares atruggling to do lately. Let's see if we can compete. We have to play good basketball, doing things well and go game by game, even if that sounds cliche. We have to improve things and we must be capable of competing in a tough game at a high level."
Filip Petrusev, Zvezda player
"It will be a very difficult game. They are in great rhythm and we know what to expect. From my point of view, we have to pay attention to their inside game, where Dubljevic is the main player, there is also Rivero and they are very useful inside. We have to stop that and play good one-on-one defense in all positions. The key is defense. To stop their game in transition, they are one of the faster teams, but also to close the paint, control the rebound."
Jaime Pradilla, Valencia player
"I am not at 100 percent yet, but the team needs my help and I already tried to give them a hand, especially in such a long week as this one. At the same time, I keep feeling better. There are four games left and we must go game by game. They are tough games against opponents that are in the same fight."