Barcelona:
Coach Sergio Scariolo post-game: “It was a good win, because we kept the lead from top to bottom. We held our ground when they came back a couple of times really hard – they are an unbelievable team, they have so many great players. It’s tough to stop them all, but I think we did a good job defensively. Offensively, too, we shared the ball quite well; we understood where to go and where not to go. We hit some shots, so I’m really happy. Onto the next one. In three days we have another one [in the Italian League], so there’s not too much to celebrate.
“As I said before, we are recovering some health – players – and I think when we will be in good shape and all together, we will be a tough team to beat, but only if we put top energy, commitment, team effort, togetherness. That’s non-negotiable.
“It’s an extremely valuable win against a top team in this competition. On the road, leading basically from the beginning until the end. I’ve got to congratulate my players; they showed character, bouncing back from a bad league game loss two days ago [against EA7 Emporio Armani Milan]. We prepared well and this is a matter of pride, seeing that the players understood exactly the game plan and tried to implement it in the right way. I think we shared the ball quite well; we had many assisted buckets. The percentages were high, because the shooting selection was good. Defensively, I would say that we had a slump in the last five minutes of the second quarter, but overall, we also had a good game [on this end], keeping into consideration that the opponent is extremely, extremely talented and offensively gifted. Overall, a good win, but still it’s just one win. We’ve got to wrap it up and move onto the next one. The day after tomorrow, we have another league game on the road, and then the double round [in the EuroLeague] next week.”
