May 24, 2013
Regular Season Game 3 - November 06, 2008 CET: 18:30 Local time: 18:30 - BASKETBALL CENTER DRAZEN PETROVIC
Cibona 85 - 76 Olympiacos

Records

Ave.   Ave.
0-0 Final Four 0-0
0-0 Playoffs 0-0
0-0 Top 16 0-0
2-0 Regular Season 2-0
2-0 Overall 2-0

Referees

Crew Chief
MARTIN, JOSE, Spain
Referee
RYZHYK, BORYS, Ukraine
Umpire
LEFWERTH, OSCAR, Sweden

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
69.5 Points 83.0
30.5 Rebounds 40.0
8.5 O. Rebounds 7.5
22.0 D. Rebounds 32.5
9.0 Assists 15.0
7.5 Steals 6.5
4.5 Blocks 5.0
17.5 Turnovers 16.0
57.8 % 2PT 65.9 %
27.0 % 3PT 27.3 %
81.4 % FT 68.1 %
71.5 Index 106.0
Team Stats - Cibona
Team Stats - Olympiacos

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
15.5 / MARSHALL, RAWLE Points 14.5 / CHILDRESS, JOSH
6.5 / Andric Rebounds 7.5 / Bourousis
1.5 / HOMAN, JARED OR 1.5 / CHILDRESS, JOSH
5.5 / Andric DR 6.5 / Bourousis
4.0 / Calloway Assists 5.0 / Papaloukas
2.0 / MARSHALL, RAWLE Steals 1.5 / CHILDRESS, JOSH
2.5 / HOMAN, JARED Blocks 2.0 / CHILDRESS, JOSH
3.5 / Calloway Turnovers 4.0 / CHILDRESS, JOSH
100.0 % / Andric 2PT 84.6 % / Printezis
100.0 % / PRINC, VEDRAN 3PT 100.0 % / HALPERIN, YOTAM
100.0 % / HOMAN, JARED FT 100.0 % / HALPERIN, YOTAM
19.0 / PRKACIN, NIKOLA Index 20.5 / Bourousis
Team Roster - Cibona
Team Roster - Olympiacos

THE TAKE

The top spot in Group A will be on the line on Thursday evening when Cibona hosts Olympiacos Piraeus at the Drazen Petrovic Basketball Center in Zagreb, Croatia. Cibona has started the season on the right foot with hard-fought wins over Maccabi Electra and Le Mans, but now faces an even steeper test against the Reds. Cibona is off to its best start to a Euroleague season in over a decade and head coach Velimir Perasovic’s men don’t want it to stop yet. Veterans Davor Kus and Niksa Prkacin have teamed with Rawle Marshall and Earl Calloway to give Cibona a balanced attack that has the fans in Zagreb excited. Olympiacos is also undefeated after routing Avellino in Italy and holding off Unicaja at home. Head coach Panagiotis Giannakis boasts a super-deep and talented roster, which has been led thus far by Josh Childress, Ioannis Bourousis and former Euroleague MVP Theo Papaoukas. They are but three of the 10 players averaging at least 14 minutes of playing time per game for the Reds. Giannakis will make full use of that roster to attack Cibona. So far this season, Olympiacos leads the league in rebounding (40 rpg.) and is among the top five teams in two-point shooting, assists and fouls drawn. In fact Olympiacos’s numbers better Cibona’s in most categories, but the hosts will test their heart this week as well. In the backcourt, the veteran Kus teams with Calloway and Marshall to take on Papaloukas, Lynn Greer, Yotam Halperin and Milos Teodosic. In the paint, Prkacin leads the way along with Luksa Andric and Jared Homan to go up against Bourousis, Nikola Vujcic, Zoran Erceg and Georgios Printezis. A crucial piece to the Olympiacos puzzle is Childress, who can affect the game inside and on the perimeter. Cibona will hope that the tandem of Vedran Vukusic and Marin Rozic can corral Childress, which would damage the Reds’ chances. Ultimately, even if Cibona’s top guns are able to control the game, the game may hinge on the ability of the home team’s reserves, who’ll have their hands full with the type of stars that Olympiacos brings off the bench. This game could set the tone for the rest of the Group A campaign. A win for Cibona will make others take notice of something special brewing in Zagreb, while a win for Olympiacos will make the Reds the team to beat. Either way, it figures to be an intriguing 40-minute clash that all viewers are certain to enjoy.

GAME NOTES

Cibona

  • Three current Cibona have previous experience in the Greek League and have been opponents of Olympiacos. Davor Kus played for AEK Athens in the 2004-05 season, where he was a teammate of current Olympiacos swingman Michalis Pelekanos. Jared Homan played under current Olympiacos head coach Panagiotis Giannakis at Marousi in the 2005-06 season and Nikola Prkacin suited up for Panathinaikos last year.
  • Center Nikola Prkacin recorded his last Euroleague double double against Olympiacos in December 2004. Prkacin had 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting plus 12 rebounds for Efes Pilsen in a 59-110 rout of the Reds.
  • Last week’s 54-58 road win for Cibona was the club’s best-defensive result since beating Efes Pilsen 60-49 in February 2006.


Olympiacos

  • Head coach Panagiotis Giannakis’ older brother Angelos passed away last Friday at the age of 55 due to a heart attack. Despite his loss, the coach has remained with the club, attending Saturday’s practice hours after the funeral and then guiding the team to victory in Sunday’s Greek League game.
  • Center Nikola Vujcic grew up near Split, Croatia, where he watched Cibona head coach Velimir Perasovic shine on the great Jugoplastika Split dynasty that won three straight Euroleague titles between 1989 and 1991.
  • Vujcic has played alongside Cibona center Niksa Prkacin many times in their careers. The two grew up together at KK Split and won the 1997 Croatian Cup. They were also teammates on the Croatian national team at the 1999, 2001 and 2005 European championships.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Euroleague.net

Quotes Head Coaches

PERASOVIC, VELIMIR
Cibona
"I don't know what to say about Olympiacos and not to repeat myself. Together with CSKA and Panathinaikos they are one of the main Euroleague title contenders this year. This is not a surprise, because they have been investing a lot in the past years, and now they have an excellent coach, Yannakis. We are aware of their strenght but we have to look for a victory at home against every team in Europe. My players are obliged to play at their maximum for the whole 40 minutes of the game and then, maybe, something positive can happen."
GIANNAKIS, PANAGIOTIS
Olympiacos
"Cibona Zagreb is a team that knows the Euroleague very well and has experienced players on its roster. Their results and their playing style so far show that they are on the right path. We are competing in one of the hottest arenas in Europe and what we have to do is exactly what I tell my players whether a gym is full or empty. We have to stay concentrated and try to establish our game during the whole night. I definitely expect a very interesting game in Zagreb.”

Players

VUKUSIC, VEDRAN
Cibona
"I have seen some of their games this year and I know they are incredibly strong. I would compare Olympiacos with Maccabi, but they have even more top quality players in all positions. We will not surrender before the game, we have a positive momentum and we have to use it."
HALPERIN, YOTAM
Olympiacos
“Every road game is difficult no matter who the opponents is, especially now that we are facing a team which seems to be in good shape. Cibona Zagreb has some players with great experience, who have played at this level for many years. At the same time we have that kind of players as well. We have to control the rhythm, since our opponents like to shoot many threes and to run the floor. For us, the most important thing is to play good defense and this is what our coach is asking from us every night.”
Cibona took the big showdown between undefeated teams in Group A by downing Olympiacos Jared Homan - Cibona85-76 in Zagreb, Croatia on Thursday night. Cibona is now the only unbeaten team in Group A with a 3-0 record. Cibona used outstanding team defense and great intensity to win its third consecutive Euroleague game. Cibona has not won its first three games in the top European competition since the 1996-97 season, when it topped Estudiantes, Spirou Charleroi and Alba Berlin for a 3-0 record. Earl Calloway paced the winners with 17 points. Rawle Marshall contributed 15, Niksa Prkacin added 13 and Davor Kus had 11 for Cibona. Lynn Greer and Ioannis Bourousis each had 14 points for Olympiacos, while Georgios Printezis added 11 for the Reds, who led 15-20 early in the second quarter. Cibona improved its defense and found its scoring references in Kus and Marshall, who pushed the hosts to a 39-28 halftime lead. An outstanding Calloway helped Cibona boost its margin to 59-42 late in the third quarter. Olympiacos got within 78-74 already in the final minute but free-throw accuracy allowed Cibona to seal a big win.

Vedran Vukusic got Cibona going with a power layup, while Olympiacos tried to get Nikola Vujcic involved in the opening minutes. Milos Teodosic stepped up with a floater, but Marin Rozic scored off a steal for a 4-2 Cibona edge. Olympiacos kept struggling to score and did not lock the defensive rebounds either. Vukusic finished a second-chance offense with a triple, but Vujcic fed Yotam Halperin for an alley-oop layup. Kus took over with a wide open three-pointer while Prkacin added a jump hook to boost the hosts' lead to 12-4. Vujcic shined with a layup-plus-foul while Theo Papaloukas stepped on court and found space for a driving layup. Earl Calloway and Bourousis traded free throws, but Olympiacos had improved its defense. Childress provided a highlight with a fast break dunk before Greer struck from downtown to give the Reds their first lead, 14-16. A tip-in by Zoran Erceg capped a 2-14 run and fixed the score at 14-18 after 10 minutes.

Lynn Greer - Olympiacos Olympiacos kept rolling early in the second quarter with Papaloukas keeping everyone involved. He fed Bourousis for a reverse layup to make it a five-point game. Kus and Marshall quickly answered from downtown to put Cibona back ahead, 21-20. Cibona was much more aggressive on defense now, while Marshall buried another triple for a 24-20 lead, after a 9-0 run. Childress stepped up with a three-point play, but a five-meter jumper by Jared Homan kept Cibona ahead, 26-23. Olympiacos head coach Panagiotis Giannakis tried to change the game rhythm with Sofoklis Schortsianitis on court, but Vedran Princ joined the three-point shootout and Marshall added an outstanding fast break basket to force the Reds to call timeout at 31-24. Homan scored in the low post and soon banked in a jumper to give Cibona its first double-digit lead, 35-25. Olympiacos could not find its way to the basket, while Marshall fed Prkacin for an easy basket that capped an 11-1 Cibona run. Printezis buried a triple, but free throws by Prkacin allowed Cibona to take a 39-28 lead to the locker room.

Bourousis tried to ignite the guests' comeback right after the break, but Vukusic and Kus sank free throws for a 44-29 Cibona lead. Once again Vukusic scored in a quick transition to make it a 17-point game. Teodosic struck from downtown, igniting a 0-7 Olympiacos run that Printezis capped with a corner triple to give the Reds some hope. Kus sank his third triple and Calloway added foul shots to give Cibona some fresh air at 51-38. Bourousis stepped up with consecutive baskets, but Calloway took over with an incredible fallaway jumper. Greer made free throws but an unstoppable Calloway followed a seven-meter bomb with free throws to boost his team's lead to 59-42. Printezis and Greer sank foul shots but Calloway answered with more free throws and had a huge block on Erceg. Bouroussis and Erceg combined for 5 quick points to cause Cibona to call timeout at 61-51. Robert Troha and Marshall hit consecutive triples, but Papaloukas kept Olympiacos within 67-55 after 30 minutes.

Olympiacos needed a quick comeback to keep its options alive, while Cibona tried to use long possessions without any success early in the fourth quarter. Vujcic stepped up with a jump hook for a 67-57 Olympiacos deficit. Papaloukas fed Vujcic for an easy basket and Cibona called a much-needed timeout at 67-59. Cibona had been scoreless for more than three minutes before Marshall made a free throw. Childress took over with a power layup while Greer sank a stop-and-pop jumper to bring the Reds back in the game at 68-63. Prkacin stepped up with a reverse layup and then finished a three-chance Cibona offense with a basket-plus-foul that sealed the outcome, 73-63, with three minutes to go. Greer sank a triple, but Homan and Rozic kept Cibona way ahead, 76-66. Printezis insisted from downtown, but it was already too little, too late, as a fully-packed Drazen Petrovic Basketball Center was already celebrating yet another big home win.
Thursday, November 06, 2008
Euroleague.net
Referees: MARTIN, JOSE (ESP), RYZHYK, BORYS (UKR), LEFWERTH, OSCAR (SWE)
Attendance: 5200
By Quarter1234
Cibona14252818
Olympiacos18102721
End of Quarter1234
Cibona14396785
Olympiacos18285576
Head coach: PERASOVIC, VELIMIR
Cibona
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
 3FG
M-A
 FT
M-A
 Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
4 HOMAN, JARED 17:40 7 3/3   1/2   2 2 1     3   4 1 9
5 KUS, DAVOR 28:54 12 0/1 3/5 3/3       3   2     4 3 9
7 LONGIN, BRANIMIR DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
8 PRKACIN, NIKOLA 26:15 13 4/8   5/5   2 2 2   2     2 5 14
9 TROHA, ROBERT 11:06 3   1/2     1 1               3
11 VUKUSIC, VEDRAN 24:50 9 2/3 1/1 2/2   6 6           2 1 13
12 ANDRIC, LUKSA 10:47   0/1     2   2     2     2   -3
13 CALLOWAY, EARL 27:57 17 3/3 1/4 8/10 1 3 4 3 4 5     3 7 22
14 KASTROPIL, FRANKO DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
19 PRINC, VEDRAN 12:08 3 0/1 1/2   1   1           1   1
20 ROZIC, MARIN 14:23 6 2/3   2/2 3 4 7   1       3 1 11
23 MARSHALL, RAWLE 26:00 15 1/7 3/7 4/6   4 4 4 1       3 6 15
Team                                
Totals 200:00 85 15/30 10/21 25/30 7 22 29 13 6 11 3 0 24 24 94
50% 47.6% 83.3%
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
Head coach: GIANNAKIS, PANAGIOTIS
Olympiacos
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
 3FG
M-A
 FT
M-A
 Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
4 PAPALOUKAS, THEODOROS 25:38 9 4/5 0/1 1/4   3 3 5 1 2     2 2 11
5 PELEKANOS, MICHALIS 4:19         1   1               1
6 CHILDRESS, JOSH 34:06 8 3/6 0/3 2/5   5 5 3   1   1 2 3 6
7 VUJCIC, NIKOLA 18:14 7 3/9   1/1   1 1 2   1     1 3 5
8 MILOSEVIC, IGOR DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
9 BOUROUSIS, IOANNIS 22:31 14 4/8   6/7 3 6 9   1       4 5 20
10 HALPERIN, YOTAM 15:15 2 1/1 0/1     1 1     1     5   -4
11 GREER, LYNN 26:50 14 1/6 2/3 6/6 2   2 1 1 1     4 5 12
16 PRINTEZIS, GEORGIOS 22:49 11 0/3 3/3 2/2   3 3 1       1 2 1 10
17 ERCEG, ZORAN 12:58 5 1/3 1/1   2 3 5   1 3   1 2 3 6
18 TEODOSIC, MILOS 14:29 5 1/3 1/1   1   1   1 2     2 1 2
21 SCHORTSANITIS, SOFOKLIS 2:51 1     1/2                   1 1
Team           1   1     1          
Totals 200:00 76 18/44 7/13 19/27 10 22 32 12 5 12 0 3 24 24 70
40.9% 53.8% 70.4%
This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

PERASOVIC, VELIMIR
Cibona
"This is a big win for Cibona, especially once Avellino beat Unicaja yesterday. We had some great moments in this game, especially the way we played in the second and third quarters. Davor Kus and Vedran Princ played aggressive defense on their backcourt players. That made the difference and was the key to this win. A team like Olympiacos can always come back into any game and you cannot give up for a moment because if you do, you can ruin everything you did up to that point."
GIANNAKIS, PANAGIOTIS
Olympiacos
"People had the chance to see a very interesting, intense game. My team lost its focus in the second quarter. We tried to come back in the second half, but we were not patient enough in offense right when it matter. Cibona kept its enthusiasm until the end of the game. We know we can learn from our mistakes in this game because we are facing a long season. Cibona played with heart and that was the key. They tried hard, collected many steals and put a good effort out there."

Players

KUS, DAVOR
Cibona
"It is nice to look at the standings and see us at the top of this group. There are only small details that separate winners from losers, and we know that we now have a winning streak but can also get into a bad run later in the season. We need to stay humble and work hard as we did so far. Olympiacos is a great team with lot of great individuals and if you get into their rhythm, you will have problems. We managed to set our own game rhythm and made it tough on their point guards to organize their offense. It was only two and a half hours before the game I realized I would be able to play this game. I hurt my ankle and I could not stand on my foot this morning."
TEODOSIC, MILOS
Olympiacos
"On paper, we were the favourites in this game, but we have a new team and need to work hard. It is only one loss and we will see how much it will hurt us in the end. Cibona played a phenomenal game. They did the same against Red Star five days ago and I was afraid of this game for a reason. They surprised us with the fullcourt press they had and with their tough defense, too. Their defense was the key of this game."
GREER, LYNN
Olympiacos
"This definitely hurt us. We needed a win to lock first place in this group and we now need to find a way to get this one back. Cibona played well and made a lot of shots, but the lead they opened in the second quarter did not decide this game. We struggled on defense and offense. We did not expect their tough defense but we did know they are a good team that was 2-0 for a reason."
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