Belgrade –
Coach Banchi’s words in the post-game in Belgrade against Maccabi: “The second half is the summary of the game. This is the picture. In the first half we were able to go with Maccabi’s flow. They kept shooting very well, and we did not show the same quality, failing to take advantages when we had to. But this is something we need to analyze and carry forward into the next competition. We are in the first week of double rounds, plus the national championship games, it is a very tough schedule. It is not easy. Every night the intensity is the same, because we are talking about a very high level and tonight Maccabi played their best.”
Did they surprise you? “We know them. We know that even in the last home game with Monaco they gave a great performance. But I remember very well the game they played in Bologna. And it was a big task for us to beat such a team, which of course is built to be one of the best teams in the league.”
What is the injury situation? “For Cacok the season is over, Dobric is still in rehabilitation. It seems that a return to action is far away. And for Jordan Mickey we are only at the beginning and this calendar does not help because players, like newcomers, need to train, just as injured players need to train. The problem is that we are not training. We are just playing and traveling. Playing and traveling. We have four away games in a row and without any training, just traveling. So it’s also hard to predict when a player like Jordan Mickey will be able to come back, because he needs to get into a rhythm, to prove himself on the court. So it’s also hard to use games to test him when the games are at that level of competitiveness. So it’s just beginning, he returned to action yesterday. We will evaluate together with the player and the medical staff when we expect him to be able to return.”
