By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Although preparation for the game against Anadolu Efes was quite satisfactory for Sito Alonso, things didn’t go according to plan in the game, resulting in Barcelona’s four defeat in six EuroLeague matches.
That was an extra reason why the Blaugrana head coach was disappointed with this loss since his players didn’t manage to translate their pregame work into game-winning action on the floor.
“We practiced well this week and I feel bad for my players because we did a good job the two or three days previous to this game and came off a couple of wins,” said Alonso during the post-game presser. “They didn’t show that good work on the court. We have to identify why this is happening because this can happen in the preseason, but at this time of the season, we should be able to figure out problems in certain games.”
Alonso began the press conference by saying the following: “I am surprised that we started the game this way. We started very, very soft and when you give that to a team like Efes, with problems in the first five games, if you allowed then to play comfortable, with confidence, if you allow them to take control of the rebounds, offense and defense, and play one-on-one situations, scoring 40 points that way tonight, it is very difficult to compete in this kind of competition. We didn’t show what we needed to show against a team with difficulties, looking for its first win. We allowed them to play and dominate the things that they do best, one-on-one situations and control the boards. Sometimes we are too anxious when we are 4, 5, 6 points down. We don’t play well on offense because of that anxiety and also rush things on defense, with different rotations because we rush things to rally, when 4-5 points down at home is nothing. On the other hand, we are more aggressive when we are 10-12 points down. We have to think about a lot of things, individually and as a team.”