By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The result fell short of their expectations but Olympiacos supporters were rocking Belgrade’s Stark Arena during the Final Four Semifinal opposite Anadolu Efes with chants stretching into the second Semifinal featuring ACB rivals Real Madrid and FC Barcelona.
As expected, the fans of the Greek powerhouse dominated in the stands heavily outnumbering the supporters of the other three teams. Before getting to the gym, it was easy to notice them marching toward Stark Arena.
“I am really grateful for our fans. Not only is today’s game that they supported us. More than 10,000 people traveled here. It is about the support we had from them the whole season,” the Reds play-caller Giorgos Bartzokas said during the postgame press conference, “They believe in our team, mentality, and our perspective on the game. I am really sad we couldn’t finally give them this happiness by winning this game today.”
20 minutes before tipoff #F4GLORY pic.twitter.com/ANj4l3Dblt
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Displaying his talents in his home country of Serbia, Vasilije Micic connected the contested three-point buzzer-beating game-winning shot to send his side into the championship game. Prior to focusing on the next challenge, colliding with Los Blancos in Saturday’s championship game, Ergin Ataman rushed to applaud Olympiacos and the fans.
Olympiacos fans still chanting for their team during the second semifinal #F4GLORY pic.twitter.com/XuY7bfhDyM
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“Congratulations to Olympiacos. The fans made a great atmosphere here,” he mentioned opening the second part of the postgame press conference, “It was the first time I saw in a Final Four held in a neutral venue, so many people supporting one team.”
Olympiacos will wrap up the Final Four participation by taking on Barca in the third-place game Saturday.