Olympiakos’ third win in a row came relatively easier, although Zalgiris is not one of the players to give up. From the 30 onwards, however, the “Red and Whites” played great basketball, shooting 52% on three-pointers, providing 23 assists and only committing 6 turnovers. No matter how much the Lithuanians wanted to get closer, it wasn’t easy for them.

The “Red and Whites” did a good job, the hand worked perfectly and 6:4 in the first ten games of the EuroLeague is a fact.

Above all, Barzoka’s quiver is slowly filling up, as he was pleased with the return of Milutinov, the addition of McKissick to the starting lineup and Brazdeikis-Sikma’s own role in the team system. The coach was particularly happy after the final +17.

Obviously there will be more difficult games than in SEF against the “Greens” of Kaunas. Olympiakos often awaits Mike James’s Monaco next week, who won a double yesterday in Vitoria and against Baskonia.

However, it is clear that the Piraeus not only stood well on their feet, but are also gradually improving all parts of their game, believing that they can only play better in the near future.

Let’s not forget that they will soon have a plus solution in the perimeter (Metro Long), while there is always the possibility of adding another big solution (Petrusev).

The rhythm of the Lithuanians

Olympiacos started in a daze, or if you like, it was very tough, or Zalgiris, who were particularly combative anyway. A team that breaks through barriers, relies on rebounds and wants to trap every opponent at its own pace. The Lithuanians tried to do the same at the start of the game, putting pressure on Olympiakos and putting their hands on ball circulation to prevent free shots from the home team.

The Lithuanian defense put Olympiakos under pressure to make last-second attempts. Meanwhile, as many free threes as the “Red-Whites” found iron (1/7 in total), while the guests had 3/4, but had the tempo under control, with the exception of the first phase, in which Fal’s assist found Kanan made their way to the basket, the players of the excellent coach Maksvitis Olympiakos almost never let their game play in the first half.

Bartzokas went into a wide rotation, while Milutinov and Luntzis gave breathing breaths, the fighter Laretzakis took the place of Kanan, Brazdeikis of Papanikolaou. In the end, Sikma came on in place of Peters, who played the first fourteen minutes consecutively.

The defense of Olympiacos, which had already worked well since the first half, began to increase the efforts of Zalgiris, Evans was trapped, the others did not see the basket and when the home team began to hit from distance (4/ 8 three-pointers also opened the score in the second quarter.

Four minutes before the end of the period, Hayes was reduced to one point, but the 14-0 that Olympiacos made with threes from Walkup and Brazdeikis and the impressive defense from Kanan on Dibsa ultimately ended with a goal foul (the Lithuanian coach received a technical Penalty) increased the SEF on the leg as the handicap at the end of the half was +12.

It could have been even bigger if Brazdeikis had hit the three-pointer that came from the top after a well-timed 8-inch attack from Barzokas’ board…

Fall of Olympiakos and Kanan

With a double-digit difference, Olympiacos now had the field free to… play ball on their field. Fal made two three-point free throws (Walkup Canaan) with his unique ability to pass well. He could have had more assists if Papanikolaou hadn’t missed, as he usually misses with his eyes closed.

Fal from Olympiakos is another player. It has nothing to do with that of Villerban or the French national team. Okay, his height remains the same, but his role in the “Red and Whites” is an integral part of the team’s game.

Even the enemies know it and rush at him in twos or threes to block his field of vision. Not so much to stop him from getting close to the basket (when he gets there, he’ll “destroy” it with an impressive dunk), but to stop him from making the pass in the first place.

Meanwhile, Kanan hit two more 3-pointers, bringing the lead to +17 and increasing the decibels in the SEF. It was not without reason that his name was heard from the podium. The American, who you may have heard about at the start of last season, continues his streak of great performances.

This time he set a personal record (25) with 4/6 three-point shots, in another pleasant evening in which his arm worked perfectly. But it’s not just that. Aizaia pushes the ball well, although he is tall, no one lets him pass easily and he is at his best at Olympiakos.

And he wasn’t… alone. Brazdeikis also scored from 6.75m, Peters did too and Olympiacos, who started with 1/7 in the first quarter, had 6/10 in the third period and 15/29 overall (51.7%). 30 minutes, i.e. after 10, the “Red-Whites” scored 14/22 and completely confused the Zalgiris defense, which simply had to submit to its fate.

And the… Alekos motto

We also wrote about it last week. Alec Peters is the attraction of this year’s Olympiacos and the one who wore Sasha Vezenkov’s shoes. Obviously they are not the same players, but the way the American plays, the team’s world will soon “forget” last year’s MVP and… idolize this year’s.

And against Zalgiris “Alekos” was impressive. After a breather from Luke Sikma, who played his position for the first time, he managed to score 22 points with 4/5 three-pointers in the 30 minutes he played and also achieved the highest score in the scoring system of this game.

In two games (with Asteras and Zalgiris) Peters scores… 50 points. And in between he had managed to put another 25 into Marousi. He is enjoying the best season of his career and Olympiakos is enjoying his amazing accuracy.

Little by little we see him in full length…

The people of Olympiacos insisted. “Wait until you see all of us,” was their chant. Little by little, this year’s “Red and White” team reveals itself to us. Milutinov’s return is a fact as the Serb plays for almost two weeks. His coexistence with Fal automatically means that there are two giants on the pitch, with different skills, fresh and not particularly difficult to deal with by any other center.

I understand we’ll also see Shaquille McKissic again, who clearly needs more time after missing more than anyone else. With a full arsenal, Bartzokas feels much better, while against Zalgiris he saw Brazdeikis provide significant help from the bench and Luntzis kept fresh the very good Tomas Walkup, who played just under 28 minutes.

The Piraeus have capitalized on their home strength and hope to do the same next, with three big SEF games against Real Madrid, Bayern and Valencia following a trip to the Principality to face Monaco.