Fischer: “We showed that it’s hard to stop us, and I hope we continue this way.” Sharp: “We want to bring a little happiness to the people of Israel.” Maccabi’s next game may determine whether they finish in first place.
By Amy Samin
In what was probably their best game of the season, Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv defeated Olympiacos 96 – 83 on Thursday night.
The team looked much better than they did in their previous game against the Greeks, in Piraeus.
After the game, Maccabi head coach Pini Gershon compared it to the war in the Gaza Strip: “The best defense is a good offense.
I’m not a politician, but in my opinion they are doing there what needs to be done.”
About the crowd booing former Maccabi player Yotam Halperin, Gershon said, “I didn’t notice the booing having much effect on him.
We had an important battle here tonight, and we needed to win it.
On a national level, the support is very encouraging.”
About the game itself, the coach said, “We made a few mistakes.
We had fouls to spare in the second quarter and we didn’t use them.
We had six offensive rebounds.
We had only two charging fouls, and that’s important if you want to win a game.
We were able to switch defenses without making mistakes.
We were able to use our advantages over their players, so we scored some easy points off Olympiacos.”
“I’m happy for everyone that we won, because I believe in putting on a good show.
We really celebrated in the locker room.
I don’t know exactly what our chances are to get to first place (in Euroleague Group A), but we’ll try and do whatever it takes next week in Malaga.
It won’t be easy, but basically there are no easy games at this point in the season.
Fischer played very well; I don’t know if it’s a good thing that he knows he’s a good player, but he did the job right and that suits me fine.
If the players want to be part of the league at this level, they need to keep on playing like they did tonight and do the maximum.
It’s not easy, but today five players scored in double figures and played like a team.
The most important thing is not to deteriorate.
If I didn’t think this team was good, I wouldn’t have come back to Maccabi.
We already took a championship with $9.5 million; money isn’t everything.”
Lior Eliyahu, one of the game’s outstanding players, said, “We put on a good show, especially in the second half.
We played really well.
We got a huge second half from Fischer in every way; we all played very well, without exceptions.
It’s a really important win for the future.
I hope we’ve changed during the time off, but it’s impossible to tell after only one game.
We had a great game and now we’re getting ready for the next one.”
Carlos Arroyo, who scored 20 points and ran the game extremely well, said, “I was very focused.
We prepared very well for this game.
We played really well and were much better in some things.
This was a very important step forward for the team.
It was an impressive game; we have a great team and everyone on it is capable of scoring 20 points every night.
The most important thing is to keep on playing this way.
We’re happy, and we’re on our way to solving our problems.
In the end, everyone can see the improvement on offense and defense.”
D’or Fischer said, “My second half was good thanks to my teammates, who got the ball to me.
We showed that we’re a cohesive team.
We showed that it’s hard to stop us, and I hope we continue this way.
I feel like I’m at home, and I hope the situation (in Gaza) improves.”
Derrick Sharp, who has lived in Israel for many years, also addressed the background against which the game was played: “It’s weird, because on the one hand, we want to bring a little happiness to the people of Israel, and on the other hand we’re thinking things like, ‘why are we even playing?’
As far as the game goes, we’re enjoying ourselves, we have more energy, and we believe in one another.”
Yotam Halperin said, “At a time like this, with everything that’s happening here, you’d think the crowd would be concentrating on other things.
Of course it’s a bad feeling to lose.
We should have been more focused.”
“Everyone feels badly about what’s happening in Israel,” Halperin added.
“I love this country, and the fans who supported me through good times and bad.
I wish Maccabi success; may they reach the Final Four.”
Nikola Vujcic, another former Maccabi player, said, “We didn’t do the things you’re supposed to do in important games.
It’s hard for me to play in a rotation like this, and I need time to adjust to it.
We are trying to have a lot of players participate in the games, and it’s hard to contribute a lot in a short amount of time.”
The game against Malaga next Thursday (15 January 2009) offers Maccabi three possible endings to the first round of Euroleague play:
Maccabi will finish first in Group A if:
1. Maccabi defeats Malaga by 21 or more points in Spain; or
2. Maccabi defeats Malaga by 8 or more points in Spain and Olympiacos loses at home to Le Mans
Maccabi will finish second in Group A if:
1. Maccabi defeats Malaga by 8 or more points in Spain and Olympiacos defeats Le Mans; or
2. Maccabi defeats Malaga by anywhere from 1 – 20 points and Olympiacos loses to Le Mans
Maccabi will finish third in Group A if:
1. Maccabi loses to Malaga; or
2. Maccabi defeats Malaga by less than 7 points and Olympiacos defeats Le Mans
