By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Olympiacos Piraeus led from start to finish and was even up by 16 but had to hold a comeback attempt by ALBA Berlin before getting the 87 – 83 victory to return to a winning track.
Alba trailed 73 – 61 early in the second period but managed to make it a 3-point game with two minutes to play. Olympiacos didn’t allow its opponents to get any closer, mostly thanks to four free throws by Tyler Dorsey that kept the Reds at a two-possession distance. Sasha Vezenkov
Dorsey finished with 13 points to lead Olympiacos‘ overall very balanced offensive output. Kostas Papanikolaou set the tone early for the hosts by scoring all of his 12 points in the first period while Sloukas had 10 points plus six assists.
“We knew they were scoring a lot lately,” Dorsey said. “Their offense has been flowing and we let it happen tonight. It squeezed down in a close one, but at least we got the win and that’s all that matters. We got another good team, Fenerbahce, coming in. They are going to be hungry, and we have to defend better for the next game.”
Rookie Oscar da Silva was the top scorer for Alba with 17 points. His baskets were the main factor in Alba’s offense during its comeback since he scored nine points in the last five minutes and put kept his team at a 3-point distance three times down the stretch.
“Unfortunately, we couldn’t win in the end but I’m happy with the effort of the team,” ALBA coach Israel Gonzalez said. “We are also recovering players, little by little, using the games as practices to introduce the ones that have been injured.”
Olympiacos captain Giorgos Printezis scored eight while reaching the 3,500-mark in EuroLeague. “I didn’t know about [the 3,500 points milestone], but trust me, I prefer this victory because it was a tough game,” Printezis said. “We played a lot of games in a row so for us in this marathon, it’s a great win and now we have to continue and improve.”
Luke Sikma flirted with the triple-double, finishing with nine points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for Alba. Maodo Lo had 11 points plus five assists.
Credit where credit’s due
Olympiacos coach Giorgos Bartzokas commended ALBA for their brand of basketball and the utilization of Luke Sikma.
“ALBA is a team I really respect,” Bartzokas said. “They play a different style of basketball with a lot passing, a lot of ball movement and with a power forward who is the basic creator. I’m talking about Sikma. We were expecting a very difficult game and, in this part of the season, it’s very important to win.”