May 22, 2013
Regular Season Game 1 - October 23, 2008 CET: 21:00 Local time: 21:00 - PALA DEL MAURO
Air Avellino 69 - 83 Olympiacos

Records

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

Referees

Crew Chief
HIERREZUELO, DANI, Spain
Referee
DOZAI, SRDAN, Croatia
Umpire
BULTO, VICENTE, Spain

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
0 Points 0
0 Rebounds 0
0 O. Rebounds 0
0 D. Rebounds 0
0 Assists 0
0 Steals 0
0 Blocks 0
0 Turnovers 0
0 2PT 0
0 3PT 0
0 FT 0
0 Index 0
Team Stats - Air Avellino
Team Stats - Olympiacos

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
0 Points 0
0 Rebounds 0
0 OR 0
0 DR 0
0 Assists 0
0 Steals 0
0 Blocks 0
0 Turnovers 0
0 2PT 0
0 3PT 0
0 FT 0
0 Index 0
Team Roster - Air Avellino
Team Roster - Olympiacos

THE TAKE

Avellino is ready to rewrite its own history on Thursday at 20: by welcoming Olympiacos in the club's first-ever Euroleague game. Avellino got ready to take the Euroleague challenge and reloaded its roster for what should be the biggest season in club history. It has the chance to show it right away, as Olympiacos play a major role in the off-season market, landing marquee free agents in all positions. Former Euroleague and Final Four MVP Theo Papaloukas is the new floor general coming off the Reds' bench. Papaloukas is back to Olympiacos after six seasons with CSKA, in which he won two Euroleague titles in 2006 and 2008. He will share the point guard duties with combo guard Lynn Greer and up-and-coming playmaker Milos Teodosic. Greer will test his scoring skills against veteran guard Travis Best. Avellino is also deep at point guard with Mike Nardi and Antonio Porta ready to step on court when required. Perhaps the biggest signing this season may arguably be Josh Childress, who will make his Euroleague debut against Avellino. He provides athleticism, talent and versatility at both wing spots. Olympiacos also inked defensive ace Michalis Pelekanos and all-Euroleague second team selection Yotam Halperin, as well as keeping small forward Giorgos Printezis. Childress will have a tough matchup against Euroleague veteran Chris Warren, while Halperin is set to have a shootout against Drake Diener and Peter Lisicky. Olympiacos must worry about Tamar Slay, one of the most versatile players in European basketball due to his ballhandling, post skills and deep range. He will team up with well-rounded veteran Nikola Radulovic and three-point threat Marko Tusek at both forward spots. Slay will have the tough mission to beat Panos Vasilopoulos, while the Reds also have a versatile forward in newcomer Zoran Erceg. At the same time, Olympiacos is ready deep around the basket with former All-Euroleague center Nikola Vujcic, Sofoklis Schortsianitis and Giannis Bouroussis, who may miss the game against Avellino. Eric Williams will be a reference for Avellino in the paint, while shot blocking ace Andrea Crosariol is set to have a tough test against Schortsianitis, one of the most unstoppable players around. Olympiacos is the favourite due to its depth and talent, but Avellino is ready to give 101% on court to please its thousands of fans in its Euroleague debut.

GAME QUOTES

Air Avellino
  • A number of players, including Mike Nardi, Antonio Porta, Evangelos Sakellariou and Tamar Slay, are set to make their Euroleague Basketball debuts in Week 1 against Olympiacos.
  • Guard Peter Lisicky returns to the Euroleague after an absence of nearly eight years. His last Euroleague Basketball game came in November 2000 as a member of Benetton Treviso.
  • Forward Nikola Radulovic and Olympiacos center Nikola Vujcic were teammates on the 2002 Asvel squad that won the French championship.
Olympiacos
  • Before the Euroleague opener, the only relation between Avelino and Olympiacos comes from… football! The legendary Greek Nikos Anastopoulos moved from Olympiacos to Avellino for the 1987-88 season and played in 16 games of the Serie A.
  • Coach Panagiotis Giannakis made last season his premiere as a coach in Euroleague, when he succeeded Pinhas Gherson on the Olympiacos bench. The so called “Dragon” made history in the season 1995-96, when he led as captain Panathinaikos to the European throne in Paris, when the Greens beat FC Barcelona, 67-66, in one of the most thrilling and controversial championship game sever.
  • Theodoros Papaloukas returned to Olympiacos after six years. He made his Euroleague debut in the 2001-02 season and then played with CSKA Moscow for six consecutive seasons. Papaloukas won twice the Euroleague title and was named MVP of the competition.
  • Three members of the current squad have won Euroleague titles: Theodoros Papaloukas (2) with CSKA Moscow, Nikola Vujcic (2) with Maccabi Tel Aviv, Yotam Halperin (2) with Maccabi Tel Aviv.
  • Olympiacos has three consecutive appearances in the Euroleague play-offs, but they didn’t make it to the Final Four, since they were eliminated by Maccabi Tel Avib, Tau Ceramica and CSKA Moscow respectively. Their last participation to the Final Four goes back to 1999, when the came third in the event which took place in Munich.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Euroleague.net

Quotes Head Coaches

MARKOVSKI, ZARE
Air Avellino
"I look forward to starting the new Euroleague season. Personally, I’m honored and proud to participate in it with Avellino, that for the first time in it history will play in Euroleague. Our supporters are very excited for this event. It will be a great emotion to play the opening game at home against Olympiacos. It has a powerful team and has a great organization. It’s one of the most important rosters in Eruoleague and probably they would like to show to be the number one. I think Olympiacos will be in Berlin for the Final Four next spring. To compete with them we should defend hard and play an easy basket."
GIANNAKIS, PANAGIOTIS
Olympiacos
"The opening game is always difficult, especially when you have to face a pretty unknown team, which will compete in front of its fanatic crowd. We know Air Avellino is a good team that shows a tough and respectable profile when they compete at home. We have to play with extra concentration and patience in this game. In addition, I would like to wish the new Euroleague season to offer higher spectacle and game quality, the arenas to be packed and the fans to enjoy the game. In Europe, there are many players of great quality and the level is really high, I would say it gets better and better every season."

Players

CINCIARINI, DANIELE
Air Avellino
"For me it is the second time in the Euroleague. Two years ago I played in Lottomatica Roma and it was a beautiful experience. But in Avellino it is very different, because Scandone is a newcomer and there is a lot of excitement for our first appearance in the Euroleague. This match will be a very tough challenge for us, because our opponent is Olympiacos. I'’s a very good team, there are so many champions. They spent last summer a lot of money to get Josh Childress. To compete with them we should be aggressive and play with intensity."
PAPALOUKAS, THEODOROS
Olympiacos
"A Euroleague opener always hides difficulties, especially for a new team like Olympiacos, which obviously hasn't found its rhythm yet. Our goal is to start the Euroleague with a road win over a team with extra motivation to beat us, since it is the first Euroleague game in the history of the Italian club. For Olympiacos, it is important to compete in parallel competitions, because I am sure that two games per week will help us find our rhythm easier."
Josh Childress - OlympiacosOlympiacos demonstrated its status as a Final Four candidate by beating Euroleague debutant Air Avellino comfortably 69-83 in its Group A opener. Josh Childress paced five players in double figures in his first ever Euroleague game with 14 points as well as 8 rebounds and 3 blocked shots. Zoran Erceg and Yotam Halperin each tallied 11 points and Georgios Printezis and Lynn Greer hit for 10 points apiece for the Reds. Former Euroleague MVP Theo Papaloukas chipped in 8 points and 4 assists in his return to the club. Head coach Panagiotis Giannakis's Olympiacos outrebounded Avellino 42-33, made 30-of-47 (63%) from inside the three-point line and blocked 8 shots. Chris Warren paced all scorers with 18 points and Travis Best added 14 points and 5 assists for the hosts. Nikola Radulovic chipped in 10 and Eric Williams had 8 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks for Zare Markovski's team, which was making its first ever appearance in the Euroleague. His team shot just 34% from the field and was unable to take advantage of 18 Olympiacos turnovers.

Best gave Avellino the lead to start the game and Childress soon scored his first basket in the Euroleague to even things at 4-4. Marko Tusek knocked down a three-ball to push the hosts ahead 9-4 while triples by Warren and Radulovic and a three-point play from Andrea Crosariol helped give Avellino a surprising 22-14 lead after one period.

Travis Best - Air Avellino Giannakis’s deep bench helped the visitors get back into the game with Milos Teodosic, Ioannis Bourousis, Panagiotis Vasilopoulos, Erceg and Halperin all scoring. Erceg knocked down a triple to knot things at 29-29. Best answered with a triple, but then Childress took over with two layups and his second blocked shot of the game in giving Olympiacos its first lead of the contest. Printezis and Papaloukas finished the second quarter with baskets for a 34-40 advantage at the break.

Drake Diener’s long ball started the second half and Williams cut the game to 41-42. But Olympiacos surged ahead with a 2-8 run for a 43-50 advantage. Best knocked down another three and a foul shot and Radulovic buried a triple as the hosts stayed within 54-59. Olympiacos, however, began to pull away for good though, leading 54-62 after three periods.

Halperin and Printezis both hit 2 baskets each during a decisive 2-12 run spanning the third and fourth quarters to build a 56-71 lead. Warren knocked down a triple and then pulled the game to within 61-71 with five minutes left. But the Reds played tough defense, holding Avellino scoreless for three minutes and hitting four foul shots for a 61-75 advantage with two minutes remaining. And that proved more than enough.

Thursday, October 23, 2008
Euroleague.net
Referees: HIERREZUELO, DANI (ESP), DOZAI, SRDAN (CRO), BULTO, VICENTE (ESP)
Attendance: 4760
By Quarter1234
Air Avellino22122015
Olympiacos14262221
End of Quarter1234
Air Avellino22345469
Olympiacos14406283
Head coach: MARKOVSKI, ZARE
Air Avellino
# 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 WARREN, CHRIS 37:44 18 5/15 2/6 2/3 2 3 5 2 2 1 1 1 3 3 11
5 RADULOVIC, NIKOLA 15:36 10 2/3 2/4     2 2         1 1 1 8
6 PORTA, ANTONIO 7:47 2 1/1               2     2   -2
8 BEST, TRAVIS 32:44 14 2/5 3/7 1/2   2 2 5 3 3     3 4 14
10 CINCIARINI, DANIELE 2:36   0/1                         -1
11 CROSARIOL, ANDREA 8:44 2 1/1       1 1   2 1     2 1 3
12 LISICKY, PETER DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
15 SLAY, TAMAR 16:07 2 1/7 0/3   1 4 5   1 3   2 5   -11
17 TUSEK, MARKO 14:49 5 0/1 1/4 2/2                 2 1  
20 WILLIAMS, ERIC 29:32 8 3/8   2/3 6 3 9   2 1   2 4 3 9
21 DIENER, DRAKE 34:10 8 1/5 2/5   2 4 6   1 2   1 3   2
30 NARDI, MIKE 0:11                              
Team           3   3               3
Totals 200:00 69 16/47 10/29 7/10 14 19 33 7 11 13 1 7 25 13 36
34% 34.5% 70%
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 25:23 8 3/4   2/2   3 3 4   1 1   1 2 15
6 CHILDRESS, JOSH 25:41 14 5/9 0/1 4/8 2 6 8 1 2 4 3   1 8 22
7 VUJCIC, NIKOLA 18:35 6 2/7   2/4 1 3 4 2           3 8
8 MILOSEVIC, IGOR 5:00     0/1     1 1           2   -2
9 BOUROUSIS, IOANNIS 13:06 8 4/4 0/1     2 2     1 1       9
10 HALPERIN, YOTAM 19:26 11 3/6 1/1 2/2 1 2 3 1 1         1 14
11 GREER, LYNN 15:34 10 3/3 0/3 4/4       1 2 4 2   1 3 10
13 VASILOPOULOS, PANAGIOTIS 16:57 3 1/1   1/2   4 4 1 1       3 1 6
16 PRINTEZIS, GEORGIOS 19:23 10 5/7     1 4 5     2 1       12
17 ERCEG, ZORAN 18:33 11 3/3 1/2 2/2 2 4 6   1 2     2 5 18
18 TEODOSIC, MILOS 14:40 2 1/3       2 2 1   2     2 1  
21 SCHORTSANITIS, SOFOKLIS 7:42         1 1 2     2     1   -1
Team           1 1 2   1           3
Totals 200:00 83 30/47 2/9 17/24 9 33 42 11 8 18 8 0 13 24 114
63.8% 22.2% 70.8%
This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

MARKOVSKI, ZARE
Air Avellino
"I'm satisfied with our team performance. We did our best facing one of the most powerful teams in the competition. I have to thank my team and our fans who never stopped to support our players. We played on the court with passion and heart, but they have a deep team and great experience that helped them wait for the right moment and to take the momentum. We spent a lot of energy early in the game, but we have to follow on this way to be competitive."
GIANNAKIS, PANAGIOTIS
Olympiacos
"I knew it could be a very difficult game against a team debuting in the competition. They played with great enthusiasm and it was a difficult start also because we missed a lot of open shots. Then our depth and experience were important weapons to take the lead and maintain it. I'm happy because we played like a team never forcing solutions. We're just at the beginning of the season we have big improvements to make, but I'm satisfied with this first match."

Players

BEST, TRAVIS
Air Avellino
"We did our best, playing a great first quarter and a good first half. After the intermission we suffered from their athletic and physical power, having big problems to control Childress when he drove to the rim and also under the boards, but I think we must be happy with our Euroleague debut."
CHILDRESS, JOSH
Olympiacos
"It was a tough debut, like I expected. It was a close game until the end and I had to use all my attitude to stay in the match. It's a great experience for me, I think I have a lot of things to learn from players like Papaloukas and Vujcic. They will help me to grow up as a player and as a man."
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