The Yellow & Blue summarized the road win in Germany. Sfairopoulos complimented Dorsey and Jones: “Although they didn’t play in the Israeli League, they stayed in rhythm and were crucial for the win”. Dorsey: “I give a lot of credit to my teammates finding me”
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv began the EuroLeague’s second round of play on the right foot, defeating Alba Berlin 85:73 in Mercedes Benz Arena. The Yellow & Blue bench came through tonight as Tyler Dorsey finished a masterful night with 25 points (5 of 6 behind the arc), Dragan Bender added 13 points and five boards, and Chris Jones had highly efficient minutes scoring 7 points while dishing five assists and grabbing four rebounds.
One more notable player was Angelo Caloiaro, who was all across the court, providing 16 points, six rebounds, and three steals. Maccabi improves their European record to 8:10 on the season as they await a double EuroLeague week hosting Olympiacos and Baskonia at Menora Mivtachim Arena.
“We played good defense, and with that, we stopped Alba’s execution”, Said head coach Giannis Sfairopoulos about what led to the victory. “We had good defensive transition, not letting them run, as offensively, whenever we had a chance to run, we did that, and when we didn’t have a clear possession, we took a second and organized the game. That’s how we kept the rhythm, which was the most important key for tonight’s win.
“All of the players were really concentrated, following the game plan. I’m very happy how they performed, and for that, I’d like to congratulate them”.
The player of the game, Tyler Dorsey, added to his coach’s statement: “I think that defensively we were locked in both halves sticking to our tactics. Every game is a must-win for us, and that’s the mindset we have to go into every game because we’re trying to climb back up into the playoffs”.
When asked what went right tonight, Dorsey said: “When you hit a couple of shots, the basket gets bigger and bigger, but I give a lot of credit to my teammates finding me off screens and catch & shoot spots where I just had to step into it. It’s like taking those practice shots, and after a while when you get a rhythm, it feels good”.
Angelo Caloiaro emphasized the importance of win: “It was very important to start the second round in the right direction. We are looking at each game one by one, and each one is important if we want to get back into the top 8. Communication is key, and it’s the staple of our play defensively as we talk a lot, especially with us switching today”.
