Bologna –
Coach Banchi spoke after the game against Efes: “Very intense game, congratulations to Efes, they have a very strong roster and very deep. In the second half we suffered a lot in rebounding and we lost too many balls and that was one of the keys to the game. I tried to put the best possible team on the court, although clearly there are players with different athletic conditions, some asking for change exhausted, for what is the level of physicality of competitions of this type. They had advantages in terms of centimeters and kilos in so many roles that we have to compensate: Efes today started with Bryant at guard, Thompson play, Johnson on the wing, with two longs giving us kilos and centimeters. I tried to lengthen the rotations to distribute the energy. Then I think in the last quarter Larkin did something amazing. The referees allowed a lot of contact, on both sides, with Poirier and Oturu parked in the area and their presence under the basket was felt so much throughout the contest and took away from our geometry of play. Reaction times change in competitions like this, you have to know how to take shots in rhythm because if you delay just a moment then they come at you. We have to improve to compete in a Euroleague of the highest level, maybe the highest ever. Clyburn? He didn’t play in the end by technical choice, no physical problems. I tried to keep as effective quintets on the court as possible, to try to plug some physical gaps. In every position Efes offers you oversized players.”
