Sergio Scariolo, coach of Real Madrid, considered that it is important for his team to continue its streak of seven consecutive wins, the last of which was at home in the Euroleague against Baskonia, and that although defeat will come, they must give the image of a team that goes out to win every game.
“It is very important to continue this moment, we will know that the time will come to lose a game and the important thing is that when it comes we do it fighting, we do it competing, we do it seriously, we do it with the image of a team that goes out to win every game. This is what we want to continue giving from humility, but also from the awareness that we are taking baby steps forward,” he said.
Scariolo indicated that the victory against the Basque team “is very important” because the rival is a team that is playing “increasingly better” and that “has finished putting together a very competitive, athletic squad, with the ability to threaten at many points on the field and with two great shooters.”
“We have done a good job to contain them although then the class has ended up coming to the surface. Howard has made very defended baskets, very difficult, very complicated, which could have been blows to morale. It is to value the patience of the players, their resilience when it comes to building the victory possession after possession. I think we have had a bit of imbalance in some quintets compared to others, something that has not been happening to us lately,” he added.
Asked about Mario Hezonja's evolution, he said that he has noticed in him “a gradual and progressive growth that has been reflected much more in day-to-day training than in games” while Alberto Abalde commented that he is one of his key players “with heart, with concentration, with physicality, with the capacity for sacrifice and with altruism” who almost always “has to defend one of the most complicated rivals.”
As for the Argentine point guard Facundo Campazzo, he stated: “He started out a little hesitant but then he grew throughout the game and had two moments of great impact, at the beginning of the third quarter and in the last quarter, he started and finished the second half very well. He is a player from whom we expect these kinds of performances, but that does not mean that he should be congratulated when he does them.”
He also explained why he did not give minutes to Alex Len: “Today the rival's dynamism, the speed with which he plays, the athleticism, the dynamism of his big men, has encouraged us to give all the minutes to Usman Garuba, although I would have liked Edy to have rested more. Alex's decision was a technical decision.”
“Obviously his form is not yet one of the best, but on Sunday he will have his opportunity and will have the possibility of growing, because it is also true that one grows by competing and playing. Depending on the opponent, we believe that there are games in which he will be able to have more prominence and others in which he will have less. Let's see what also happens with Tavares' breaks, which of course will be important to continue the line that we have started since the beginning of the season,” he concluded.
