A FOURTH quarter that decided the game. Now the series is one to zero, but it’s still long.  “Too bad about fourth quarter. We didn’t need that. I don’t think it was being too sure we’d won that stopped us. We knew Olympiacos could still be very dangerous.” Leader, Nikos Zisis, speaks and is bitter about the home loss, but is convinced to still be in the series, mind and body. “I congratulate them. They did a good job at rebounds. We knew they were strong under the net and that that could be a problem for us. Now we have 48 hours to think about what went wrong and to work on improving to be ready for tomorrow.” TOMORROW is game 2. It’s a game that carries a lot of weight. The series just started, but for Mens Sana it’s a game they can’t afford to lose in terms of series moving to Athens. “It’s a last resort game for us. We know we can’t mess us if we want to tie the series back up. We made a lot of little mistakes during crucial phases, and they did a good job at always punishing us for it.” Oddly, the game turned in favour of Greece when Athens’ shining star, Spanuolis, exited the game with five fouls. “It’s true. It’s interesting that the decisive phase was played without such an important player like Spanoulis. But that just lets us know even more that they’re a strong team that plays as a team. Did I expect all this? Well, yes. I know that they’re extremely physical and that they’re always aggressive in all areas of the court. We’re starting up again trailing one to zero, but we’re confident.”

Guido De Leo