The issue in the point guard position and Schortsanitis’ return were some of the topics Argyris Pedoulakis conversed upon, speaking at the Press Conference.
“The boys felt that an issue in point-guard position existed Diamantidis sidelined but also with Banks who caught a cold. We established our pace through defense. We managed it in the first half and in the second half we attempted to try out things we will be needing in the future. Apollon has had a good stride as a new-comer to the League, it is a contained team and I wish all the best to an historical club of true basketball merits but also to Nikos Vetoulas. Sofo, as was Roko Leni Ukic, were sidelined for almost a month that is why we offer them time, while Gist doesn’t completely know the game plays yet. It is only natural for us to lose our rhythm some times. They need both games and practices; we have the guys that have suffered injuries and they too will have to get into a competitive rhythm. Now Diamantidis is sidelined and we shall see when he will return. This year we have had many injuries but all of these issues forge the team. Like in the game versus Cantu where we were missing our big-men, today we were missing our perimeter players. I believe that there are lots to gain from such situations. As far as Diamantidis, we do not know when he is to return. He will have to try out and we shall see. In the encounter against Zalgiris, Diamantidis wanted to re-enter the game after the first time he was substituted but we didn’t want to risk anything because he is an important player to us and if we lose him for a more extended period of time it will be the worst case scenario for the lot of us”.
Apollon Patras Head Coach, Nikos Vetoulas, stated: “From the very beginning we had said that we must view today’s encounter as one through which we should establish our pace after the League’s recess for the holidays. We had an entirely incorrect approach during the first half, we went to fast offenses and Panathinaikos punished us. During the second half we had said that we must tighten our defense, we achieved it to a certain extent and I believe that we provided an improved team image. Panathinaikos’ victory is 100% fair. We knew that they would be determined after the clash over in Turkey and that they are in for a tough schedule ahead in Euroleague. We focus on the ensuing season and the games we can win. Congratulations to Panathinaikos and all the best next”.
James Gist, who seemed to adjust further in the game versus Apollon, stressed: “We must congratulate Apollon for its effort. We fought after the tough game in Turkey and before the clash across from Unicaja Malaga. We played aggressively today, focused and we tried to improve certain things which we failed to perform correctly in the game across from Anadolu Efes”.
Giannis Lianos, an Apollon player, stated: “It was a tough game for us. Our goal was to seem more competitive in the game and at the rebounds. Unfortunately we failed to achieve it during the first half. The game got away from us defensively. During second half we improved and presented a better image. Now we are looking forward towards the next games from which we can gain things; all the best next to Panathinaikos”.
