By Lefteris Moutis/ moutis@eurohoops.net
Until Friday night Zalgiris was proud not only for the six wins in seven Euroleague games, but also for having the best offense in the competition scoring 86,1 ppg. Coach Joan Plaza achieved to combine the Spanish with the Lithuanian style of basketball but Olympiacos forced his team to lose for their first time at home by scoring only 63 points. So, the atmosphere in Zalgiris’ locker rooms after the game wasn’t cheerful. Whoever wasn’t talking to the media was stuck silent in his seat thinking what would happen if…
Darjus Lavrinovic was also in that mood saying to Eurohoops.net: “We played very bad. We didn’t have communication during the game and that always costs”. Which was the biggest change between the game in SEF and in Zalgirio Arena? According to the experienced big guy: “Olympiacos is a different team now. They play now much better and have good atmosphere. We played zone defense and it was very bad”.
Although the heavy loss, Zalgiris remains on the top of the group thanks to win by 18 points in SEF. “It doesn’t matter so much if we finish first or second in the group. We care about it, but we care more about how we play. We must try to play better. It’s very important for us to do it and to work hard” said Lavrinovic reminding that “one game doesn’t erase our whole effort so far”.