Olympiacos are back on the defensive, finding wins and reasons to smile

Olympiacos went to Spain with four consecutive defeats on their minds, one of which was a thoughtful misspelling as they lost to Red Star in the SEF, and return with a win over Baskonia and a detail loss to Euroleague champions Real Madrid. In terms of going, coming is more comfortable for the Piraeus with their record now 13-9 and a deep breath they needed so badly.

They took her away while feeling like they were being squeezed into the corner, the suitors surrounding her. Knowing that winners from Vitoria had to return, they took a step forward and, among other things, celebrated their first European victory of 2022.

Obviously Olympiacos haven’t solved all of their problems. Also, the team failed to express the first games again in two nights before being hit by the coronavirus and suffering the consequences of an already “small” squad. But he regained his composure, core principles, some of his energy and key players that he had missed in previous losing games.

The defense played by the Piraeus team in Madrid and Vitoria was exemplary.

• Real’s 82 points gave him 75 with 25/67 shots, with the pace and flow of the game pushing the limit of 70 points and a shot lost by Olympiacos and set by the hosts
• Basconia fell ten points below their average (62 instead of 72) at 43.8% (25/57), but Olympiakos forced them to make 16 errors and steal the ball 13 times for an easy basket in surprise.

If the “red-whites” in Istanbul and Tel Aviv (and partially with Asteras in SEF) find their lost defensive identity, we will see that in the next games as well. The doubles match in Spain showed an obvious improvement in this part, which translated numerically into a passive 68.5 pence, while in the previous set of three games lost their opponents scored 84.9 pence!

The 62 pence he received at the ‘Fernando Buesa Arena’ is Olympiacos’ second-best defensive tally, after the 50 that Basconia accidentally gave him back in the first round game (regular-season debut).

He found the other constants

The stability of the defense is very fundamental for this year’s Olympiakos, who set up whatever he wants in the other half from the back of the field. On the other hand, the constants that are the same everywhere in physics (in the set) appear again and again and on an individual level. It is logical that after the covid hit, strength and energy wanes, but slowly everyone is returning to where they were before the virus found them.

• Mustafa Fal is one of them, we’ve been seeing him since the beginning of the year. The French center has regained his strength and in Vitoria he was a real breakwater, with two blocks and five or six shots that drove Baskonia away from the noise of the guests. The offensive rebound (Olympiakos’ first of the game) that Dorsey scored to make it 60-70 and finally sealed the game was his icing on the cake on that night of victory in the Basque Country.
• Tyler Dorsey also returned to highs, hitting 17p, in a performance he apparently sought with (sometimes) energetic pull on the pitch. It was the mistake the Greek-American didn’t make this time as he usually made the right pick and shot 6/10 shots.

Woookup is still stealing

Thomas Wookap also spoke about the staff at the stadium. Of course, the American, who scored a three-pointer like he lost in Madrid, didn’t elaborate on what happened two nights ago. He made one of the best matches wearing the Olympiakos jersey, violently falling on every player he tagged (mainly Baldwin) and stealing balls with the scoop.

The blonde security guard got a little rematch of himself which shows how useful he is at this year’s Olympics. Remember the picture of last year’s team’s vulnerable peripheral defenses, especially when faced with dynamic guards? Woookup is the main cause of the transformation this season…

And Papanikolaou shoots at three

The good functioning of the defense also put the name of Costas Papanikolaou in a prominent position. The international striker seems… an idiot when Olympiacos close the doors to his opponents. He puts his hands all over the place, gets rebounds, corrects mistakes and that’s why there’s usually a defensive problem when he’s not on the ground.

Only this time “Pap” was aggressively present. Four (in four) threes while Basconia tried to threaten to equalize or even pass in front of goal. The “bombshells” reminded him of Papanikolaou in 2012-13, when he finished with 52% three-pointers in an exciting year that eventually sent him to Barcelona (and then the NBA).

At 32, the international ace seems more mature than ever and knows the job very well. And a lot depends on his own shot, as long as he carries on with the same confidence.

Add to that another great performance from Sasha Vezenkov, who remains the team’s most stable player from the start. Olympiakos started off with fast attacks, with good circulation that seemed to have fallen by the wayside by the end of the half (only 2 assists). In the second half (10 final passes), the ball rolled better, Sloukas made the right decisions and took advantage of his teammates.

The “Red-Whites” finally got what they were looking for, they got their 4th away win, but they will need more, possibly in more difficult games. Euroleague doubles have started, possibly more than 18 wins are needed to qualify for the playoffs, which seems to be the limit. Next Thursday’s fight against Efes is a very crucial game as the Turks have launched their counterattack to enter the octave.

Another win will keep them good in the playoffs but send them into the last four of the following cup with one more breath.