By Antonis Stroggylakis/ info@eurohoops.net
Last night (20/12) CSKA Moscow saw its four-game winning streak getting snapped in Piraeus against Olympiacos, by losing 88 – 86 for Round 13 of the EuroLeague regular season.
The “Army Men” were up 54 – 64 with three minutes left in the third quarter but collapsed defensively in the fourth (24-and failed to repel a late rally by their opponents. More than anything, that’s what particularly troubled CSKA center Kyle Hines after the match.
“We had momentum throughout the game. We won the first three quarters but we weren’t able to make a stop in the crucial moments and preserve this momentum down the stretch,” Hines told Eurohoops.
The American big, who finished with 11 points and 8 rebounds for 17 PIR, emphasized on a particular sequence of the fourth period that proved to be key in the loss. With CSKA down 81 – 79 and a bit more than two minutes remaining, Olympiacos managed not one, two or three but… six (!) offensive rebounds in the same play.
Τhese second-chance opportunities weren’t translated into baskets but allowed the Reds to buy some precious time right when CSKA was making its own comeback case, turning the 79 – 72 deficit to a one-possession affair.
“That stretch with the consecutive offensive rebounds. There was one period when they had 3 and in the other, they had six,” Hines said to Eurohoops. “Things like these make a difference in close games. These are the key x and os that can decide such games. That makes a difference. The crucial plays, the physical plays. That was the biggest key.”
Olympiacos won this pivotal battle of the boards in the final lap despite missing its two top rebounders in the EuroLeague: Giorgos Printezis (5.5 r.p.g.) and Nikola Milutinov (5.4 r.p.g.). So it’s natural for the three-time EuroLeague champion of CSKA to feel a bit of a letdown for his team’s performance in that area when everything was on the line.
“Generally, a team like Olympiacos… they play with will, they play with desire. It’s disappointing for us to say, but they outwitted us in these key moments. It’s on us to get better. To become physical and stronger so that this kind of moments won’t be repeated in the future.”
“The physicality, the aggressiveness, and the will,” Hines answered when asked what his team should learn from this loss. “Knowing that they (Olympiacos) are missing key players, other players had to step up. And they did, they played well. If you want to continue to reach our goals and accomplish the things we want in the future, we have to play with more heart and desire in crucial moments”
A game-altering adjustment by Olympiacos was also the small-ball lineup with forward Ioannis Papapetrou playing as “5”. While it made all the difference in the world for the Greek squad since it led them through a 19 – 4 partial score in a period spanning from the end of the third quarter to the mid of the fourth, Hines believes that it wasn’t something that confused him and his teammates and that their issues were located elsewhere.
“It’s not the first time we had to face such a defense. We have an experienced team. We’ve seen multiple different types of defenses against us. The offense wasn’t the problem. We put up 86 points which are right around our average. The problem wasn’t our offense but that we allowed them to have 88 points.”
Speaking of numbers, the current EuroLeague campaign has been one of Hines’ most prolific seasons in his career so far. He’s been averaging 9.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.1 blocks per game for a career-high 15.5 in PIR per game.
Is there a particular secret behind his production increase?
“I don’t know! I really don’t. If I knew, I’d probably do that earlier (laughs). Right now, my team has a good offensive rhythm. Even tonight (vs Olympiacos). We are playing with a bit higher offensive pace. Maybe that’s it,” the 31-year-old big guy said.
Visiting “Peace and Friendship” arena, the home of the Olympiacos with which he won two of his three EuroLeague titles (the back-to-back achievement of 2012-2013), is something special for Kyle Hines since he has only the fondest of memories from his years with the Red & White jersey.
“It’s always great to come back here. Obviously, I see so many familiar moments and share the special moments and times I had here. I’d rather come back and walk away with a victory of course. In retrospect, It’s always a good feeling to come back here and a lot of familiar faces and friends.”