By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
FC Barcelona couldn’t complete their return to the championship game for a rematch against Anadolu Efes this year and Sarunas Jasikevicius didn’t bite his tongue in the post-game press conference.
“I thought we were not going good. I didn’t like the way we played”, said Jasikevicius in his opening remarks. “We were not ready to sacrifice, we made fouls on the situations of the shots, and Madrid didn’t take shots in the end.”
“I missed a lot of extra professionalism and sacrifice [from my players]. Huge disappointment for us, not a question”.
Jasikevicius elaborated more on his halftime talk to his players, and how it turned out in the opposite direction for them in the second half.
“Those things usually come back at you”, he said. “Over the course of 40 minutes, I didn’t manage to prepare my team. The coach is most responsible, there’s no question.”
The Lithuanian coach was also asked about the Rising Star of the 2021-22 season, Rokas Jokubaitis and his presence in the Final Four.
“He came out he got his minutes”, stated Saras. “The big boys gotta play, this is the Final Four. It’s usually decided by the big boys and the X factors. “
Obviously displeased with the result, Jasikevicius added: “In the last 2 years, I’ve been with the team, we lost a lot of decisive games. We are not “killers”. It’s difficult to accept for me”.
Spirits were lifted on the opposing end, with Real Madrid head coach Pablo Laso praising his team’s effort and Fabien Causeur’s contribution.
“We did a great effort playing against a great team”, he said. “Happy with the way my players understood the game plan and stuck to it”.
Despite losing Nigel Williams-Goss early in the game, Real not only found the solution but managed to pull away with the victory with a stunning performance in the second half, mostly thanks to the unselfishness of Causeur.
“Nigel’s injury changed our game plan a little bit”, commented the Real Madrid coach. “The great thing about the team is that everyone can step up. With Nigel out, we solved it with Fabien, with Alberto and Sergio [Llull]. Fabien played with a character. We always believe that he is somebody who can step up in big moments.”