Tau Ceramica vs. CSKA Moscow - ShowGame - Welcome to EUROLEAGUE BASKETBALL

May 21, 2013

Final Four Game 1 - May 02, 2008 CET: 21:00 Local time: 21:00 - PAB. DEP. COMUNIDAD DE MADRID

Tau Ceramica 79 - 83 CSKA Moscow

FINAL FOUR, GAME 1

GROUP Semi-Final A

Montepaschi Siena 85 - Maccabi Elite 92

GROUP Semi-Final B

Tau Ceramica 79 - CSKA Moscow 83

Records

Ave.		Ave.
0-0	Final Four	0-0
2-1	Playoffs	2-1
5-1	Top 16	4-2
9-5	Regular Season	12-2
16-7	Overall	18-5

Referees

Crew Chief

BRAZAUSKAS, ROMUALDAS, Lithuania

Referee

KOUKOULEKIDIS, STELIOS, Greece

Umpire

ANKARALI, RECEP, Turkey

Team Stats

Ave.		Ave.
82.3	Points	78.7
32.3	Rebounds	32.0
8.8	O. Rebounds	8.1
23.4	D. Rebounds	23.9
13.1	Assists	14.2
8.1	Steals	7.7
2.7	Blocks	2.7
12.6	Turnovers	10.2
56.7 %	2PT	53.0 %
38.0 %	3PT	41.0 %
72.9 %	FT	74.5 %
89.5	Index	91.5

Team Stats - Tau Ceramica

Team Stats - CSKA Moscow

Player Stats

Ave.		Ave.
13.9 / SPLITTER, TIAGO	Points	14.0 / SISKAUSKAS, RAMUNAS
5.2 / SPLITTER, TIAGO	Rebounds	5.9 / Andersen
1.7 / SPLITTER, TIAGO	OR	1.9 / Goree
3.5 / SPLITTER, TIAGO	DR	4.3 / Andersen
3.9 / PRIGIONI, PABLO	Assists	4.8 / Papaloukas
1.5 / PRIGIONI, PABLO	Steals	1.3 / Papaloukas
0.8 / SPLITTER, TIAGO	Blocks	1.0 / Goree
2.1 / PRIGIONI, PABLO	Turnovers	2.0 / Papaloukas
63.2 % / SPLITTER, TIAGO	2PT	58.8 % / SISKAUSKAS, RAMUNAS
48.8 % / Jasaitis	3PT	54.3 % / Andersen
89.7 % / PRIGIONI, PABLO	FT	87.9 % / LANGDON, TRAJAN
16.2 / SPLITTER, TIAGO	Index	16.1 / SISKAUSKAS, RAMUNAS

Team Roster - Tau Ceramica

Team Roster - CSKA Moscow

THE TAKE

A pair of Final Four regulars will battle for one ticket to the Euroleague Basketball Final when CSKA Moscow takes on Tau Ceramica. CSKA, which is making its sixth consecutive Final Four appearance, won the title in 2006 and reached the title game last season. Tau has been to the last four Final Fours, but the only time it has reached the title game was in 2005, when it beat CSKA in the semifinal in Moscow. Both teams already faced each other in the regular season and CSKA beat Tau twice, getting a historical triumph in Vitoria that broke the hosts' 30-game winning streak. Accordingly, the two teams know each other very well and there will be little room for surprises. Theo Papaloukas and J.R. Holden keep breaking records with their sixth consecutive Final Four appearance and become the only players to do so. The only Tau players that have been in all four Final Four appearances are Sergi Vidal, Pablo Prigioni and Tiago Splitter. Vidal also made it to the first-ever Euroleague final with Tau in 2001. Holden, Victor Khryapa and Zakhar Pashutin can join an impressive list of players in the last decade to win the Euroleague title while also being a European champion with their respective national team that already feature names like Papaloukas, Predrag Danilovic or Sarunas Jasikevicius, all listed as half-century contributors in the historical, one-of-a-king ceremony that will take place before the game as the central act of 50 Years of European Club Basketball. Above all, it is a unique chance to watch one of the best basketball games that the Euroleague can offer, with archrivals going against each other in the best scenario possible - looking for a spot in the Euroleague title game. Head-to-Heads \| Semis Breakdown \| Press Conference Quotes Wednesday, April 30, 2008 Euroleague.net

A pair of Final Four regulars will battle for one ticket to the Euroleague Basketball Final when CSKA Moscow takes on Tau Ceramica. CSKA, which is making its sixth consecutive Final Four appearance, won the title in 2006 and reached the title game last season. Tau has been to the last four Final Fours, but the only time it has reached the title game was in 2005, when it beat CSKA in the semifinal in Moscow. Both teams already faced each other in the regular season and CSKA beat Tau twice, getting a historical triumph in Vitoria that broke the hosts' 30-game winning streak. Accordingly, the two teams know each other very well and there will be little room for surprises. Theo Papaloukas and J.R. Holden keep breaking records with their sixth consecutive Final Four appearance and become the only players to do so. The only Tau players that have been in all four Final Four appearances are Sergi Vidal, Pablo Prigioni and Tiago Splitter. Vidal also made it to the first-ever Euroleague final with Tau in 2001. Holden, Victor Khryapa and Zakhar Pashutin can join an impressive list of players in the last decade to win the Euroleague title while also being a European champion with their respective national team that already feature names like Papaloukas, Predrag Danilovic or Sarunas Jasikevicius, all listed as half-century contributors in the historical, one-of-a-king ceremony that will take place before the game as the central act of 50 Years of European Club Basketball. Above all, it is a unique chance to watch one of the best basketball games that the Euroleague can offer, with archrivals going against each other in the best scenario possible - looking for a spot in the Euroleague title game.
Head-to-Heads | Semis Breakdown | Press Conference Quotes

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Euroleague.net

Quotes Head Coaches

SPAHIJA, NEVEN Tau Ceramica “Good morning to everybody. It’s very difficult to say something after my colleagues. And I will repeat what they said. I am very proud to be part of this family, to be with my team at the best competition in Europe. I am very proud to part of the ULEB family and want to congratulations Jordi Bertomeu and all the people from the Euroleague organization for everything that they’ve done for basketball in Europe in the last 10 years.” "There is not much to say about how to beat CSKA, because we are talking about the best European team there is. You have to play the best game possible, defensively and offensively, to have a chance. Tau must play its best game of the season, just that. The key is to respond to any details of theirs, to respond to everything. It's very difficult because they are able to answer everything you do, as well. Because of that, they are the best team in Europe. I think that my team is ready mentally, first of all. If we are tough, strong and compete from the first second and never give up, I think we can have our opportunity."

SPAHIJA, NEVEN

Tau Ceramica

“Good morning to everybody. It’s very difficult to say something after my colleagues. And I will repeat what they said. I am very proud to be part of this family, to be with my team at the best competition in Europe. I am very proud to part of the ULEB family and want to congratulations Jordi Bertomeu and all the people from the Euroleague organization for everything that they’ve done for basketball in Europe in the last 10 years.”

"There is not much to say about how to beat CSKA, because we are talking about the best European team there is. You have to play the best game possible, defensively and offensively, to have a chance. Tau must play its best game of the season, just that. The key is to respond to any details of theirs, to respond to everything. It's very difficult because they are able to answer everything you do, as well. Because of that, they are the best team in Europe. I think that my team is ready mentally, first of all. If we are tough, strong and compete from the first second and never give up, I think we can have our opportunity."

MESSINA, ETTORE CSKA Moscow “Good morning to everybody. Thanks to the Community of Madrid and the Euroleague for hosting us and welcoming us for this competition. You may not know that this season is the 85th anniversary of CSKA, the club of the army in Russia. It’s a club that for your understands has won more than 1,000 Olympic medals. So you understand it is a great honor to represent out club in the Euroleague and in the Final Four this year. The only thing I can say is that we will be proud and humbled to try and represent our club and for all the Russian players to also represent the country.” “The only thing I can answer you is with the words of Coach Tanjevic, the coach of Fenerbahce Ulker, who when he was in Italy used to say that experience is the sum of all the mistakes you made in your life. So it’s not necessarily a good thing. The first year I went to the Final Four in 1998 in Barcelona, I was a rookie coach and there were great coaches like Obradovic and Ioannidis and we won the cup. So obviously I don’t wish this performance on the rookie coaches at the Final Four this year and I hope my players will take care of me.” “I think that it might sound strange, but I think especially in the Euroleague, the role of the coach is going back to the role that the coach had back in the ‘70s when it was really the center of the club, obviously he needed a big structure behind him, a solid management, people who were professional, but it was really about the coach, like it is now. Like you see, most of the clubs had continuity and the clubs that had success kept their coaches for three, four, five years and there was a mutual philosophy that the coaches and clubs shared. I think this is a big lesson. We had clubs like Real Madrid, like Ignis Varese and many, many others in Europe that kept their coaches together with a great executive And it worked, the combination of a great executive with a great – or considered great – coach. Honestly, I think if I’m here and I’m here many times, it’s because of great people I’ve had as management at the clubs where I’ve worked. Not only me and the players.” “Of course to take title is always important for everybody. For every coach and every player. But honestly, every time I’ve been to the Final Four, I can’t think about a possible second game. I always say to my team that if you don’t win the first game, it’s going to be a final two not a Final Four, because you go home. For me the Final Four begins and ends tomorrow with game with Tau. We know that if we can in a game with so much pressure like the semifinal of the Euroleague to b close to our top level, we have chance to win. This is what we know. And we have to work in our minds and our legs to be able to play well tomorrow. If we lower our level, our chances of winning become slimmer and slimmer.” “I am grateful to Trajan because he is one of the few players who has helped me to be good coach. Because you cannot always communicate with your players. You need some of your players to be able to translate to the others what you want to tell them.”

MESSINA, ETTORE

CSKA Moscow

“Good morning to everybody. Thanks to the Community of Madrid and the Euroleague for hosting us and welcoming us for this competition. You may not know that this season is the 85th anniversary of CSKA, the club of the army in Russia. It’s a club that for your understands has won more than 1,000 Olympic medals. So you understand it is a great honor to represent out club in the Euroleague and in the Final Four this year. The only thing I can say is that we will be proud and humbled to try and represent our club and for all the Russian players to also represent the country.”

“The only thing I can answer you is with the words of Coach Tanjevic, the coach of Fenerbahce Ulker, who when he was in Italy used to say that experience is the sum of all the mistakes you made in your life. So it’s not necessarily a good thing. The first year I went to the Final Four in 1998 in Barcelona, I was a rookie coach and there were great coaches like Obradovic and Ioannidis and we won the cup. So obviously I don’t wish this performance on the rookie coaches at the Final Four this year and I hope my players will take care of me.”

“I think that it might sound strange, but I think especially in the Euroleague, the role of the coach is going back to the role that the coach had back in the ‘70s when it was really the center of the club, obviously he needed a big structure behind him, a solid management, people who were professional, but it was really about the coach, like it is now. Like you see, most of the clubs had continuity and the clubs that had success kept their coaches for three, four, five years and there was a mutual philosophy that the coaches and clubs shared. I think this is a big lesson. We had clubs like Real Madrid, like Ignis Varese and many, many others in Europe that kept their coaches together with a great executive And it worked, the combination of a great executive with a great – or considered great – coach. Honestly, I think if I’m here and I’m here many times, it’s because of great people I’ve had as management at the clubs where I’ve worked. Not only me and the players.”

“Of course to take title is always important for everybody. For every coach and every player. But honestly, every time I’ve been to the Final Four, I can’t think about a possible second game. I always say to my team that if you don’t win the first game, it’s going to be a final two not a Final Four, because you go home. For me the Final Four begins and ends tomorrow with game with Tau. We know that if we can in a game with so much pressure like the semifinal of the Euroleague to b close to our top level, we have chance to win. This is what we know. And we have to work in our minds and our legs to be able to play well tomorrow. If we lower our level, our chances of winning become slimmer and slimmer.”

“I am grateful to Trajan because he is one of the few players who has helped me to be good coach. Because you cannot always communicate with your players. You need some of your players to be able to translate to the others what you want to tell them.”

Players

TELETOVIC, MIRZA Tau Ceramica ”It's the Final Four so it's a very special game. We know we have to come out and play a good game. CSKA is a very good team and they are always very well prepared to play a tough game. From the other two games this season against them we have a lot of experience. But we will have to start hard and stay concentrated. And everything we are working on before the game we just have to follow it during the game.”
MICKEAL, PETE Tau Ceramica ”It's one of the best defenses against one of the best offenses. I think it will be a great game and I'm looking forward to coming out with a good start. After tonight's practice, reality will hit and we will focus more on the game. Their big guys can all shoot and post up. There are not a lot of teams in Europe who can do that. The perimeter players are great and they can shoot. Hopefully we can stop their drive to the basket. So I'm looking forward to a great game. They are a complete team so we're playing against a complete team. There's only one way to beat the runner-up from last year and the champ from the year before and that's to take it from them.”
PRIGIONI, PABLO Tau Ceramica ”We have to have a balance between defense and offense. We can play good defense, but their defense is really tough. They press a lot. They have clear rules how they play defense. We cannot make any crazy decisions on offense. We have to find this balance between defense and offense. On offense it will depend on who plays with more patience and is smarter. I don't think experience will decide anything. In our first Final Four we beat CSKA and we didn't have any experience. And the last two we lost in the semifinals. Anything can happen tomorrow. I tell the other guys, maybe this is the last chance. Every time I come here I think maybe this is the last chance. So we have to think like that. We have to be concentrated and be focused on everything.”
SINGLETON, JAMES Tau Ceramica “It’s all about mental state right now. There’s nothing left to do that we haven’t done in the past 72 hours. For us it’s about playing hard. CSKA’s a great team. They have a great coach and great players. If we play together and do what we did all season to get here, we’ll be fine. It’s all basketball to me. It doesn’t matter if I’ve played against them before or not. They haven’t really had a chance to see me play, but Coach Messina has seen me when he coached at Benetton. He kinda knows what I’m capable of. And I’ve played against Smodis, Van der Spiegel, Andersen and a few other players. We have a good understanding of what to do. We just need to play together. The key for us is rebounding and perimeter defense. If we get that down, we’re good.”
PLANINIC, ZORAN Tau Ceramica “It's my second Final Four and obviously it's a different feel. Now I have more experience and I'm more familiar with how things work around here. They beat us twice this season already, but I hope the third time will be ours. For too many years, the favorites have won the Final Four. I hope this year things will be different and the underdog will win the title. We need to start with a win tomorrow first of all. We're very good in attacking the basket, and that's how we'll try to beat them. We know CSKA is one of the best defensive teams in the Euroleague, so we'll have to score quick baskets, control the tempo and make them think how to stop us.”
RAKOCEVIC, IGOR Tau Ceramica “We have a lot of tools inside that can give them a hard time, but I think CSKA is a team with no weaknesses, so we'll have to play a perfect game in order to beat them. The fact they beat us twice already says something, but it doesn't mean that we don't have a chance tomorrow. We're going to go out there and do our best to win this game.”
MCDONALD, WILL Tau Ceramica "Being in the Final Four is an incredible thing. It is a special thing for me and all of my teammates to be here. We have to do what everybody has to do to beat a team like CSKA, which is playing hard. We have to play to the best of our abilities. We lost twice against CSKA this season but that doesn't count now. It is a new game, a new day and we all have a new face. CSKA and Tau Ceramica are two great teams, so we can only look at the outcome. Nobody knows what is going to happen and we will do our best to make it to the Euroleague final."

TELETOVIC, MIRZA

Tau Ceramica

”It's the Final Four so it's a very special game. We know we have to come out and play a good game. CSKA is a very good team and they are always very well prepared to play a tough game. From the other two games this season against them we have a lot of experience. But we will have to start hard and stay concentrated. And everything we are working on before the game we just have to follow it during the game.”

MICKEAL, PETE

Tau Ceramica

”It's one of the best defenses against one of the best offenses. I think it will be a great game and I'm looking forward to coming out with a good start. After tonight's practice, reality will hit and we will focus more on the game. Their big guys can all shoot and post up. There are not a lot of teams in Europe who can do that. The perimeter players are great and they can shoot. Hopefully we can stop their drive to the basket. So I'm looking forward to a great game. They are a complete team so we're playing against a complete team. There's only one way to beat the runner-up from last year and the champ from the year before and that's to take it from them.”

PRIGIONI, PABLO

Tau Ceramica

”We have to have a balance between defense and offense. We can play good defense, but their defense is really tough. They press a lot. They have clear rules how they play defense. We cannot make any crazy decisions on offense. We have to find this balance between defense and offense. On offense it will depend on who plays with more patience and is smarter. I don't think experience will decide anything. In our first Final Four we beat CSKA and we didn't have any experience. And the last two we lost in the semifinals. Anything can happen tomorrow. I tell the other guys, maybe this is the last chance. Every time I come here I think maybe this is the last chance. So we have to think like that. We have to be concentrated and be focused on everything.”

SINGLETON, JAMES

Tau Ceramica

“It’s all about mental state right now. There’s nothing left to do that we haven’t done in the past 72 hours. For us it’s about playing hard. CSKA’s a great team. They have a great coach and great players. If we play together and do what we did all season to get here, we’ll be fine. It’s all basketball to me. It doesn’t matter if I’ve played against them before or not. They haven’t really had a chance to see me play, but Coach Messina has seen me when he coached at Benetton. He kinda knows what I’m capable of. And I’ve played against Smodis, Van der Spiegel, Andersen and a few other players. We have a good understanding of what to do. We just need to play together. The key for us is rebounding and perimeter defense. If we get that down, we’re good.”

PLANINIC, ZORAN

Tau Ceramica

“It's my second Final Four and obviously it's a different feel. Now I have more experience and I'm more familiar with how things work around here. They beat us twice this season already, but I hope the third time will be ours. For too many years, the favorites have won the Final Four. I hope this year things will be different and the underdog will win the title. We need to start with a win tomorrow first of all. We're very good in attacking the basket, and that's how we'll try to beat them. We know CSKA is one of the best defensive teams in the Euroleague, so we'll have to score quick baskets, control the tempo and make them think how to stop us.”

RAKOCEVIC, IGOR

Tau Ceramica

“We have a lot of tools inside that can give them a hard time, but I think CSKA is a team with no weaknesses, so we'll have to play a perfect game in order to beat them. The fact they beat us twice already says something, but it doesn't mean that we don't have a chance tomorrow. We're going to go out there and do our best to win this game.”

MCDONALD, WILL

Tau Ceramica

"Being in the Final Four is an incredible thing. It is a special thing for me and all of my teammates to be here. We have to do what everybody has to do to beat a team like CSKA, which is playing hard. We have to play to the best of our abilities. We lost twice against CSKA this season but that doesn't count now. It is a new game, a new day and we all have a new face. CSKA and Tau Ceramica are two great teams, so we can only look at the outcome. Nobody knows what is going to happen and we will do our best to make it to the Euroleague final."

SISKAUSKAS, RAMUNAS CSKA Moscow ”For sure it's going to be a very tough game for us. But it's only one game and everything can happen. I have the same goal as last year: To stay calm. A cool head helps you in the game. Of course there will be emotions but I will try not to show them on the court. More of less on the court I will try to stay calm. They have good post-up players and good guards who can make threes and play pick-and-roll. I hope we are ready for them. We have to stop the whole team. There is not one special player. They play good team basketball.”
SMODIS, MATJAZ CSKA Moscow ”Basically you have to think about the semifinal game as just any other game and not worry too much about any other game and keep it as simple as possible. We just have to focus on doing the things we have to do. We just have to trust each other and do the things we've done all season. There's been a little bit of a rivalry over the past five or six years between CSKA and Tau. It's going to be a very tough matchup. They are a very tough team to beat. They have a lot of players and can give us a lot of different looks. They've been to a lot of Final Fours as well and it's going to be one of the classic clashes in the Final Four. It's just going to be the little details that are going to make the difference.”
VAN DEN SPIEGEL, TOMAS CSKA Moscow “We [Prokom] played the opening game of the season against CSKA and I saw all the people from the Euroleague media and I thought that would be the last time I see those guys, but it wasn’t. It’s great to be here. I’ve been dealing with some injuries the last month, but it’s great to be here and be a part of this gain and to have a chance to win it again. I think that heart is more important than being fit. It’s not like I’m a kind of player that needs to play 35 minutes. I hope I can give a few quality minutes defensively to the team and help. I just want to help and we’ll see. It’s coach’s decision. He’ll decide how fit I am and I can help. I’ll be ready. The Final Four is about details. We have to focus on the small things and just be CSKA. We’re the best four teams in Europe. Everybody can beat everybody. It’s going to be interesting.”
HOLDEN, J.R. CSKA Moscow “In these Final Fours, it's the teams that make the plays that win. Every game has been close. And every game is gonna be really tough. That semifinal game, you have to get off to a good start. You have to make teams close and you have to make them take jump shots. The team that gets the easy shots inside and the layups usually controls the tempo and wins the game. So the key will be to get off to a good start. And hopefully we can make plays down the stretch.” ”The beginning of the third quarter is always crucial. At halftime you make a few changes. I always say the first quarter, the team that gets off fast and can kind of sustain it. And then the third quarter, usually you get a lead or fall behind in the third quarter. And that's where you really need to start making plays and getting some defensive stops.” ”They have seven or eight guys who can all make plays. So it's tough [to say] who will make the difference. They have stars that can all really score like Rakocevic or Planinic and Splitter inside. Then you got Pete Mickeal and Singleton as well. So you have a lot of guys. And then a couple of guys who just kind of slip in there and then pop up like Prigioni and Vidal. With all those guys, they don't really drop off when they do substitutions. And that will be key to the game, is maintaining that intensity and pressure throughout the game.” ”Rakocevic can score so you really just have to run around after him and work through the screens. You can't stop a player like that you just have to make things tough on him, try to make him take difficult shots. Prigioni is just a team guy. He plays great defense and gets his hands on lots of balls. He also gets a lot of assists so you have to try to take that away. He's one of those guys who as soon as you fall asleep he will hit one or two threes. You just have to stay focused on him and play hard on him as long as possible.”
ZISIS, NIKOS CSKA Moscow “It's my first Final Four, so it's a big experience for me. Until now I was sitting at home and watching the games on TV, so now I'll get to feel it myself. In CSKA, some players have played already six, seven, even eight Final Four with different teams, so we spoke about it a little and they told me the most important thing is to try to enjoy the experience the most. I'm feeling better now with the injury. At first I feared that I might not play in the Final Four, but I feel better now and I can't wait to take the court and help my team win the game.”
ANDERSEN, DAVID CSKA Moscow “This is my seventh Final Four, and every Final Four has a different feel. Tau is a very tough team, with a lot of weapons, and we'll have to stop these weapons if we want to make it to the finals. After a one-year break, it's time to bring the title back to Moscow. We have a very experienced team, and the trick in the Final Four is to have players who make the small things that are actually big plays. I think we have these kind of players, so I hope this will have an effect tomorrow."
LANGDON, TRAJAN CSKA Moscow "It will be a tough game. They are playing very good basketball and are a very good team. We were fortunate enough the two games we played against him this season. We played well in both games but right now they are playing the best basketball of the year. We have to make it hard for them to score if we want to win on Friday. They play well on both ends of the floor and have a lot of players that have been together for many years. We have to take them out of their system and make them do what they don't want to do. We expect a difficult first game against Tau, and that's all we are thinking about. We have to play hard against them and see what happens."

SISKAUSKAS, RAMUNAS

CSKA Moscow

”For sure it's going to be a very tough game for us. But it's only one game and everything can happen. I have the same goal as last year: To stay calm. A cool head helps you in the game. Of course there will be emotions but I will try not to show them on the court. More of less on the court I will try to stay calm. They have good post-up players and good guards who can make threes and play pick-and-roll. I hope we are ready for them. We have to stop the whole team. There is not one special player. They play good team basketball.”

SMODIS, MATJAZ

CSKA Moscow

”Basically you have to think about the semifinal game as just any other game and not worry too much about any other game and keep it as simple as possible. We just have to focus on doing the things we have to do. We just have to trust each other and do the things we've done all season. There's been a little bit of a rivalry over the past five or six years between CSKA and Tau. It's going to be a very tough matchup. They are a very tough team to beat. They have a lot of players and can give us a lot of different looks. They've been to a lot of Final Fours as well and it's going to be one of the classic clashes in the Final Four. It's just going to be the little details that are going to make the difference.”

VAN DEN SPIEGEL, TOMAS

CSKA Moscow

“We [Prokom] played the opening game of the season against CSKA and I saw all the people from the Euroleague media and I thought that would be the last time I see those guys, but it wasn’t. It’s great to be here. I’ve been dealing with some injuries the last month, but it’s great to be here and be a part of this gain and to have a chance to win it again. I think that heart is more important than being fit. It’s not like I’m a kind of player that needs to play 35 minutes. I hope I can give a few quality minutes defensively to the team and help. I just want to help and we’ll see. It’s coach’s decision. He’ll decide how fit I am and I can help. I’ll be ready. The Final Four is about details. We have to focus on the small things and just be CSKA. We’re the best four teams in Europe. Everybody can beat everybody. It’s going to be interesting.”

HOLDEN, J.R.

CSKA Moscow

“In these Final Fours, it's the teams that make the plays that win. Every game has been close. And every game is gonna be really tough. That semifinal game, you have to get off to a good start. You have to make teams close and you have to make them take jump shots. The team that gets the easy shots inside and the layups usually controls the tempo and wins the game. So the key will be to get off to a good start. And hopefully we can make plays down the stretch.”

”The beginning of the third quarter is always crucial. At halftime you make a few changes. I always say the first quarter, the team that gets off fast and can kind of sustain it. And then the third quarter, usually you get a lead or fall behind in the third quarter. And that's where you really need to start making plays and getting some defensive stops.”

”They have seven or eight guys who can all make plays. So it's tough [to say] who will make the difference. They have stars that can all really score like Rakocevic or Planinic and Splitter inside. Then you got Pete Mickeal and Singleton as well. So you have a lot of guys. And then a couple of guys who just kind of slip in there and then pop up like Prigioni and Vidal. With all those guys, they don't really drop off when they do substitutions. And that will be key to the game, is maintaining that intensity and pressure throughout the game.”

”Rakocevic can score so you really just have to run around after him and work through the screens. You can't stop a player like that you just have to make things tough on him, try to make him take difficult shots. Prigioni is just a team guy. He plays great defense and gets his hands on lots of balls. He also gets a lot of assists so you have to try to take that away. He's one of those guys who as soon as you fall asleep he will hit one or two threes. You just have to stay focused on him and play hard on him as long as possible.”

ZISIS, NIKOS

CSKA Moscow

“It's my first Final Four, so it's a big experience for me. Until now I was sitting at home and watching the games on TV, so now I'll get to feel it myself. In CSKA, some players have played already six, seven, even eight Final Four with different teams, so we spoke about it a little and they told me the most important thing is to try to enjoy the experience the most. I'm feeling better now with the injury. At first I feared that I might not play in the Final Four, but I feel better now and I can't wait to take the court and help my team win the game.”

ANDERSEN, DAVID

CSKA Moscow

“This is my seventh Final Four, and every Final Four has a different feel. Tau is a very tough team, with a lot of weapons, and we'll have to stop these weapons if we want to make it to the finals. After a one-year break, it's time to bring the title back to Moscow. We have a very experienced team, and the trick in the Final Four is to have players who make the small things that are actually big plays. I think we have these kind of players, so I hope this will have an effect tomorrow."

LANGDON, TRAJAN

CSKA Moscow

"It will be a tough game. They are playing very good basketball and are a very good team. We were fortunate enough the two games we played against him this season. We played well in both games but right now they are playing the best basketball of the year. We have to make it hard for them to score if we want to win on Friday. They play well on both ends of the floor and have a lot of players that have been together for many years. We have to take them out of their system and make them do what they don't want to do. We expect a difficult first game against Tau, and that's all we are thinking about. We have to play hard against them and see what happens."

CSKA Moscow booked a spot in its third straight Euroleague Basketball championship game by holding off Tau Ceramica 79-83 in the second semifinal of the 2008 Final Four at the Community of Madrid Sports Palace on Friday in the Spanish capital. Ramunas Siskauskas iced the game with a pair of free throws with 6.5 seconds left after Tau tried to rally late. Siskauskas finished with 16 points as one of five CSKA scorers in double figures. In Sunday’s final, CSKA will look for its second title in three years and sixth overall, which would rank it second all-time behind only Real Madrid. In the final, CSKA will face the team it defeated in the 2006 title game in Prague, Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv, which beat Montepaschi Siena 85-92 earlier Friday. Tau led at halftime and was up early in the fourth quarter, but Theo Papaloukas scored twice in a 0-10 CSKA charge that turned the game around. CSKA held on until the final minute, when some missed free throws from Papaloukas and triples from Pablo Prigioni and Igor Rakocevic carried Tau to within 2 with less than 10 seconds remaining. However Siskauskas was up to the task with the game on the line, setting up a classic Euroleague final between the two biggest superpowers of the decade. David Andersen missed only one shot on his way to 16 points as well for CSKA, while J.R. Holden finished with 15, Matjaz Smodis added 14 and Papaloukas 10. Rakocevic paced Tau with 19, Tiago Splitter and Zoran Planinic scored 17 points apiece and Pete Mickeal had 11 in defeat. Tau Ceramica head coach Neven Spahija surprised everyone by starting Will McDonald to go against Andersen, who was first to score on his trademark turnaround jumper. Rakocevic and Smodis soon traded jumpers for a 2-4 CSKA lead. Planinic took over with a driving basket, but Siskauskas quickly answered in the same way. McDonald provided a highlight with a wild one-handed dunk and Rakocevic added an outstanding three-point play to give Tau its first lead at 9-6. CSKA took a timeout, after which Siskauskas stepped up with a driving layup and soon added a three-pointer to restore a 9-11 lead. Planinic tied the game with free throws, but Marcus Goree gave CSKA an 11-12 just as Papaloukas came off the bench. Splitter had a nice move in the low post, which Andersen erased with a floating layup. Goree muscled his way for another bucket and Papaloukas added free throws as the CSKA lead stretched to 13-18. Mickeal flew in for a baseline slam that charged the Tau fans and Mirza Teletovic tied the game with a triple. Smodis put CSKA back on top only for Mickeal’s jumper to knot it at 20-20 at the end of the opening period. After a scoreless minute, Splitter got the second period going with a baby hook and then took a dish from Prigioni and added another score in the paint, causing CSKA to take a timeout. Tomas Van den Spiegel came in to fortify CSKA’s defense and Smodis drove for a basket. Trajan Langdon and Siskauskas each picked up their third fouls in rapid succession and went to the bench and free throws from Splitter and Planinic made it 27-22. A Rakocevic triple in transition soon had Tau up 6. And with Smodis serving as the only CSKA weapon on offense at this point, Tau’s big men began to focus on him even more. Despite the momentum, poor free-throw shooting by Tau prevented the club from building a formidable lead. Holden stepped up with a big three against Tau’s zone only to see Planinic match him at the other end. Holden cut away at the lead, but after a Tau timeout, baskets from McDonald and Splitter put their team ahead by 8. Holden buried another three and Splitter added a free throw to make it 39-33 at halftime. Andersen scored inside twice as the second half got underway, however baskets by Rakocevic and Planinic kept Tau in control. Holden fired CSKA up with a triple and a steal from Rakocevic before Langdon tied the game at 43-43 with his first three of the night, resulting in a Tau timeout. CSKA regained the lead on Smodis free throws, but McDonald and Mickeal kept Tau close. Andersen stepped outside to make it 48-52 only for Planinic to drive Tau back within 2. Langdon picked up his fourth foul and found himself back on the bench again as Splitter tied the game at the other end. A Mickeal floater put Tau back on top. Siskauskas hit free throws and McDonald scored in the paint as the lead started to sway from side to side. Papaloukas’s free throws allowed CSKA to lead 56-57 heading into the fourth period. Prigioni was called for an unsportsmanlike foul for grabbing Holden from behind on a fast break early in the fourth quarter. Despite Holden's free throws, Rakocevic tied the game with a three-pointer Tau went on top in Splitter free throws, which were the result of Siskauskas’s fourth foul. Holden tied things with an acrobatic shot and Andersen made it 61-63 with a turn-around jumper. Splitter was next to 4 fouls, his coming on the offensive end. Meanwhile Langdon sank free throws and Papaloukas scored in transition as CSKA went up 6. After a Tau timeout, CSKA defense pressured Tau and a Mickeal miss turned into a Papaloukas slam that capped a 0-10 run. McDonald scored inside, but Andersen matched that with a jumper. A Mickeal triple made it 66-71, however Langdon free throws kept CSKA in control. An Andersen jumper over Teletovic put CSKA up 9 with two-and-a-half minutes to go. Splitter made 2 from the line, but an Andersen follow slam was like a dagger to the Tau fans’ last hopes. After 2 Planinic free throws, he stole the ball and set Prigioni up for a triple that brought Tau back to life. Papaloukas made only 1 free throw and Rakocevic cut the gap to 76-80 with less than 30 seconds to go. Papaloukas again made only one from the line and a wild sequence resulted in a Rakocevic three to get within 2, but Siskauskas drew a foul and iced the game with a pair of free throws with 6.5 seconds left. Friday, May 02, 2008 Frankie Sachs, Madrid

CSKA Moscow booked a spot in its third straight Euroleague Basketball championship game by holding off Tau Ceramica 79-83 in the second semifinal of the 2008 Final Four at the Community of Madrid Sports Palace on Friday in the Spanish capital. Ramunas Siskauskas iced the game with a pair of free throws with 6.5 seconds left after Tau tried to rally late. Siskauskas finished with 16 points as one of five CSKA scorers in double figures. In Sunday’s final, CSKA will look for its second title in three years and sixth overall, which would rank it second all-time behind only Real Madrid. In the final, CSKA will face the team it defeated in the 2006 title game in Prague, Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv, which beat Montepaschi Siena 85-92 earlier Friday. Tau led at halftime and was up early in the fourth quarter, but Theo Papaloukas scored twice in a 0-10 CSKA charge that turned the game around. CSKA held on until the final minute, when some missed free throws from Papaloukas and triples from Pablo Prigioni and Igor Rakocevic carried Tau to within 2 with less than 10 seconds remaining. However Siskauskas was up to the task with the game on the line, setting up a classic Euroleague final between the two biggest superpowers of the decade. David Andersen missed only one shot on his way to 16 points as well for CSKA, while J.R. Holden finished with 15, Matjaz Smodis added 14 and Papaloukas 10. Rakocevic paced Tau with 19, Tiago Splitter and Zoran Planinic scored 17 points apiece and Pete Mickeal had 11 in defeat.

Tau Ceramica head coach Neven Spahija surprised everyone by starting Will McDonald to go against Andersen, who was first to score on his trademark turnaround jumper. Rakocevic and Smodis soon traded jumpers for a 2-4 CSKA lead. Planinic took over with a driving basket, but Siskauskas quickly answered in the same way. McDonald provided a highlight with a wild one-handed dunk and Rakocevic added an outstanding three-point play to give Tau its first lead at 9-6. CSKA took a timeout, after which Siskauskas stepped up with a driving layup and soon added a three-pointer to restore a 9-11 lead. Planinic tied the game with free throws, but Marcus Goree gave CSKA an 11-12 just as Papaloukas came off the bench. Splitter had a nice move in the low post, which Andersen erased with a floating layup. Goree muscled his way for another bucket and Papaloukas added free throws as the CSKA lead stretched to 13-18. Mickeal flew in for a baseline slam that charged the Tau fans and Mirza Teletovic tied the game with a triple. Smodis put CSKA back on top only for Mickeal’s jumper to knot it at 20-20 at the end of the opening period.

Igor Rakocevic - Tau Ceramica - Semifinal Tau Ceramica vs. CSKA Moscow - Final Four 2008

Igor Rakocevic - Tau Ceramica - Semifinal Tau Ceramica vs. CSKA Moscow - Final Four 2008

After a scoreless minute, Splitter got the second period going with a baby hook and then took a dish from Prigioni and added another score in the paint, causing CSKA to take a timeout. Tomas Van den Spiegel came in to fortify CSKA’s defense and Smodis drove for a basket. Trajan Langdon and Siskauskas each picked up their third fouls in rapid succession and went to the bench and free throws from Splitter and Planinic made it 27-22. A Rakocevic triple in transition soon had Tau up 6. And with Smodis serving as the only CSKA weapon on offense at this point, Tau’s big men began to focus on him even more. Despite the momentum, poor free-throw shooting by Tau prevented the club from building a formidable lead. Holden stepped up with a big three against Tau’s zone only to see Planinic match him at the other end. Holden cut away at the lead, but after a Tau timeout, baskets from McDonald and Splitter put their team ahead by 8. Holden buried another three and Splitter added a free throw to make it 39-33 at halftime.

Andersen scored inside twice as the second half got underway, however baskets by Rakocevic and Planinic kept Tau in control. Holden fired CSKA up with a triple and a steal from Rakocevic before Langdon tied the game at 43-43 with his first three of the night, resulting in a Tau timeout. CSKA regained the lead on Smodis free throws, but McDonald and Mickeal kept Tau close. Andersen stepped outside to make it 48-52 only for Planinic to drive Tau back within 2. Langdon picked up his fourth foul and found himself back on the bench again as Splitter tied the game at the other end. A Mickeal floater put Tau back on top. Siskauskas hit free throws and McDonald scored in the paint as the lead started to sway from side to side. Papaloukas’s free throws allowed CSKA to lead 56-57 heading into the fourth period.

David Andersen - CSKA Moscow - Semifinal Tau Ceramica vs. CSKA Moscow - Final Four 2008

David Andersen - CSKA Moscow - Semifinal Tau Ceramica vs. CSKA Moscow - Final Four 2008

Prigioni was called for an unsportsmanlike foul for grabbing Holden from behind on a fast break early in the fourth quarter. Despite Holden's free throws, Rakocevic tied the game with a three-pointer Tau went on top in Splitter free throws, which were the result of Siskauskas’s fourth foul. Holden tied things with an acrobatic shot and Andersen made it 61-63 with a turn-around jumper. Splitter was next to 4 fouls, his coming on the offensive end. Meanwhile Langdon sank free throws and Papaloukas scored in transition as CSKA went up 6. After a Tau timeout, CSKA defense pressured Tau and a Mickeal miss turned into a Papaloukas slam that capped a 0-10 run. McDonald scored inside, but Andersen matched that with a jumper. A Mickeal triple made it 66-71, however Langdon free throws kept CSKA in control. An Andersen jumper over Teletovic put CSKA up 9 with two-and-a-half minutes to go. Splitter made 2 from the line, but an Andersen follow slam was like a dagger to the Tau fans’ last hopes. After 2 Planinic free throws, he stole the ball and set Prigioni up for a triple that brought Tau back to life. Papaloukas made only 1 free throw and Rakocevic cut the gap to 76-80 with less than 30 seconds to go. Papaloukas again made only one from the line and a wild sequence resulted in a Rakocevic three to get within 2, but Siskauskas drew a foul and iced the game with a pair of free throws with 6.5 seconds left.

Friday, May 02, 2008

Frankie Sachs, Madrid

Referees: BRAZAUSKAS, ROMUALDAS (LTU), KOUKOULEKIDIS, STELIOS (GRE), ANKARALI, RECEP (TUR)

Attendance: 13480

By Quarter	1	2	3	4
Tau Ceramica	20	19	17	23
CSKA Moscow	20	13	24	26

End of Quarter	1	2	3	4
Tau Ceramica	20	39	56	79
CSKA Moscow	20	33	57	83

Head coach: SPAHIJA, NEVEN

Tau Ceramica
#	Player	Min	Pts	2FG M-A	3FG M-A	FT M-A	Rebounds			As	St	To	Bl		Fouls		PIR
#	Player	Min	Pts	2FG M-A	3FG M-A	FT M-A	O	D	T	As	St	To	Fv	Ag	Cm	Rv	PIR
5	PRIGIONI, PABLO	22:02	3		1/6		1	5	6	3	1	1			3		4
6	GARCIA, ANDER	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
8	RAKOCEVIC, IGOR	27:36	19	3/6	3/5	4/5		1	1	1		3			3	3	12
9	VIDAL, SERGI	12:24			0/2			3	3	1					2	2	2
10	PLANINIC, ZORAN	33:17	17	5/5	1/3	4/4		1	1	4	2	2			4	3	19
11	FERNANDEZ, LUCHO	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
12	TELETOVIC, MIRZA	25:30	3	0/1	1/4			1	1						3	1	-2
13	JASAITIS, SIMAS	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
15	SINGLETON, JAMES	2:50													3		-3
21	SPLITTER, TIAGO	27:10	17	5/7		7/14		3	3	1	2	1	1		5	12	21
33	MICKEAL, PETE	25:59	11	4/6	1/1		2	3	5	1		1			3	2	13
45	MCDONALD, WILL	23:12	9	4/5		1/2	2	4	6		1		1		3	2	14
	Team										1	2					-1
	Totals	200:00	79	21/30	7/21	16/25	5	21	26	11	7	10	2	0	29	25	79
				70%	33.3%	64%

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: MESSINA, ETTORE

CSKA Moscow
#	Player	Min	Pts	2FG M-A	3FG M-A	FT M-A	Rebounds			As	St	To	Bl		Fouls		PIR
#	Player	Min	Pts	2FG M-A	3FG M-A	FT M-A	O	D	T	As	St	To	Fv	Ag	Cm	Rv	PIR
4	PAPALOUKAS, THEODOROS	25:52	10	2/4		6/8		4	4			3			4	4	7
6	ZISIS, NIKOS	13:22						1	1			1			1		-1
8	SMODIS, MATJAZ	25:20	14	5/9	0/7	4/5	3	3	6		1	2		1	3	5	8
9	SISKAUSKAS, RAMUNAS	20:21	16	3/4	1/4	7/8	2		2	1		1			4	6	15
10	HOLDEN, J.R.	38:23	15	2/7	3/4	2/2		1	1	3	2			1	2	3	15
11	PASHUTIN, ZAKHAR	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
13	ANDERSEN, DAVID	26:28	16	8/8	0/1	0/1	1	3	4	1					4	3	18
21	LANGDON, TRAJAN	22:45	9	1/1	1/2	4/4	1	2	3		1				4	3	11
22	GOREE, MARCUS	20:41	3	1/2		1/4	1	1	2		1				1	4	5
23	SHVED, ALEXEY	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
24	VAN DEN SPIEGEL, TOMAS	3:14													1	1
31	KHRYAPA, VICTOR	3:34			0/1										1		-2
	Team						1	5	6		2	1					7
	Totals	200:00	83	22/35	5/19	24/32	9	20	29	5	7	8	0	2	25	29	83
				62.9%	26.3%	75%

This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

SPAHIJA, NEVEN Tau Ceramica “I would like to congratulate CSKA Moscow. It's not a shame to lose to them. They are a great team. But I would like to congratulate my team. We lost our concentration in one stage and that was the difference. But in the end, I think they deserve this final. I told my players that they are very strong after halftime and that they have to watch out. My power forward had three fouls and I took the risk of playing the start of the second half with two big guys and they got two inside baskets right away. We still played until the end and fought. So I don't think the beginning of the second half decided the game. CSKA is such a strong team. You can't keep them down.”

SPAHIJA, NEVEN

Tau Ceramica

“I would like to congratulate CSKA Moscow. It's not a shame to lose to them. They are a great team. But I would like to congratulate my team. We lost our concentration in one stage and that was the difference. But in the end, I think they deserve this final. I told my players that they are very strong after halftime and that they have to watch out. My power forward had three fouls and I took the risk of playing the start of the second half with two big guys and they got two inside baskets right away. We still played until the end and fought. So I don't think the beginning of the second half decided the game. CSKA is such a strong team. You can't keep them down.”

MESSINA, ETTORE CSKA Moscow ”It was a very difficult game. Tau came in extremely prepared in the first half to take away our inside game. They broke all of our offense. And we didn't have the coordination between the inside and outside game. And we got nervous. The good thing is that we did not change anything from the first half. In the second half we had a lot of balance on the inside and outside. We had a lot of guys who worked hard on one side or the other. Now we are very tired and happy. For a few seconds at halftime I thought about changing something in our strategy. But I didn't think it was fair to change. If we didn't do something well, we just had to do it better. And if we made any changes then all the things we believe every day would be crushed.” “It's very special to be back in the final. I have been very lucky to be in the final seven times. And it's especially special at this Final Four since it's the celebration of 50 years of the Final Four. So things here have been very delicate from a psychological and physical standpoint. Now we just have to focus on Sunday because if we win it will be something extremely big. It will be a final of two distinguished teams.” “I felt a little bit like a young kid after the ceremony. I was a little bit lost for some part of the warm-up and some part of the game because of the ceremony. I have no problem saying that. But to see so many heroes was something that really really made me like this. I felt like a kid at Disneyland seeing so many of my idols and having my family in the stands. It took away a little bit of my concentration.”

MESSINA, ETTORE

CSKA Moscow

”It was a very difficult game. Tau came in extremely prepared in the first half to take away our inside game. They broke all of our offense. And we didn't have the coordination between the inside and outside game. And we got nervous. The good thing is that we did not change anything from the first half. In the second half we had a lot of balance on the inside and outside. We had a lot of guys who worked hard on one side or the other. Now we are very tired and happy. For a few seconds at halftime I thought about changing something in our strategy. But I didn't think it was fair to change. If we didn't do something well, we just had to do it better. And if we made any changes then all the things we believe every day would be crushed.”

“It's very special to be back in the final. I have been very lucky to be in the final seven times. And it's especially special at this Final Four since it's the celebration of 50 years of the Final Four. So things here have been very delicate from a psychological and physical standpoint. Now we just have to focus on Sunday because if we win it will be something extremely big. It will be a final of two distinguished teams.”

“I felt a little bit like a young kid after the ceremony. I was a little bit lost for some part of the warm-up and some part of the game because of the ceremony. I have no problem saying that. But to see so many heroes was something that really really made me like this. I felt like a kid at Disneyland seeing so many of my idols and having my family in the stands. It took away a little bit of my concentration.”

Players

MCDONALD, WILL Tau Ceramica ”I said it yesterday and I also said it this morning. This is a game that you have to be intense for 40 minutes. The first time that we let up is going to cost us. This is what happened in our regular season game in Moscow. We did not play hard for three minutes and that cost us. CSKA is a team that you need to play very well to beat them and you cannot give it a chance. We had a chance to win from the beginning of the game, everybody was motivated and ready to win and we played well, but it was not enough. Of course, we want to win the Third Place game on Sunday. Nobody comes here to lose and have to win the next game. We came here to win games.”
MICKEAL, PETE Tau Ceramica ”It is a great experience to be in the Final Four and we are not done, we have another game to play and my head is not down. I don't feel like we lost the game. I don't feel bad at all. We could have played a little better, but that is the way it goes. Sometimes the referees call it your way, sometimes they don't. You have to play hard no matter what and have the chance to win the game. Last season Tau lost the third-place game against Unicaja. We finished fourth last season and we will try to finish third this season. We have no other choice.”
VIDAL, SERGI Tau Ceramica “It was a close game and I think we did a good job. We fought until the last second. We just had a couple plays that didn't work. We played good defense. But we made some fouls and kind of got mad and lost our patience. The key was to keep the same level from the beginning to the end. But we just couldn't do it for some times.”
SPLITTER, TIAGO Tau Ceramica “It was a very tough game. It's frustrating we came so close, but didn't get the win. We fought hard, but CSKA is a very good team. They played better in the second half and managed to get a few advantages. There were some strange things in the last quarter, and they played very aggressive. Now we need to end this season with a win on Sunday. I hope we'll find the power to get ourselves together and beat Montepaschi.”
PLANINIC, ZORAN Tau Ceramica "We played very good in the first half, we did what the coach asked us to do and everything went as planned, but in the second half we didn't play as tough as we should on defense and they took advantage of it. You’ve got to give them credit. A lot of the players on this team won a title already. They know how to make it done, and we suffered from that today."

MCDONALD, WILL

Tau Ceramica

”I said it yesterday and I also said it this morning. This is a game that you have to be intense for 40 minutes. The first time that we let up is going to cost us. This is what happened in our regular season game in Moscow. We did not play hard for three minutes and that cost us. CSKA is a team that you need to play very well to beat them and you cannot give it a chance. We had a chance to win from the beginning of the game, everybody was motivated and ready to win and we played well, but it was not enough. Of course, we want to win the Third Place game on Sunday. Nobody comes here to lose and have to win the next game. We came here to win games.”

MICKEAL, PETE

Tau Ceramica

”It is a great experience to be in the Final Four and we are not done, we have another game to play and my head is not down. I don't feel like we lost the game. I don't feel bad at all. We could have played a little better, but that is the way it goes. Sometimes the referees call it your way, sometimes they don't. You have to play hard no matter what and have the chance to win the game. Last season Tau lost the third-place game against Unicaja. We finished fourth last season and we will try to finish third this season. We have no other choice.”

VIDAL, SERGI

Tau Ceramica

“It was a close game and I think we did a good job. We fought until the last second. We just had a couple plays that didn't work. We played good defense. But we made some fouls and kind of got mad and lost our patience. The key was to keep the same level from the beginning to the end. But we just couldn't do it for some times.”

SPLITTER, TIAGO

Tau Ceramica

“It was a very tough game. It's frustrating we came so close, but didn't get the win. We fought hard, but CSKA is a very good team. They played better in the second half and managed to get a few advantages. There were some strange things in the last quarter, and they played very aggressive. Now we need to end this season with a win on Sunday. I hope we'll find the power to get ourselves together and beat Montepaschi.”

PLANINIC, ZORAN

Tau Ceramica

"We played very good in the first half, we did what the coach asked us to do and everything went as planned, but in the second half we didn't play as tough as we should on defense and they took advantage of it. You’ve got to give them credit. A lot of the players on this team won a title already. They know how to make it done, and we suffered from that today."

VAN DEN SPIEGEL, TOMAS CSKA Moscow “It was not our best game, I think, but we got to win it and that is the most important thing. You know that if you lose in the Final Four, you run out of chances to win, so we prepared the game well, some of our guys hit some big shots and really step up in the second half. We won, and now we want to win again on Sunday. Theo Papaloukas stepped up, but J.R. Holden kept us in the game and played incredible defense. David Andersen came up with some big shots down the stretch, so everybody contributed. We had five guys in double figures, which shows it was a team effort tonight. We face Maccabi in the final for the second time in three years. Both are two great organizations and looks like it will be like an away game for us. We have to be ready for it.”
PAPALOUKAS, THEODOROS CSKA Moscow “We knew it would be a tough game. The first half was not very good. Tau completely controlled the game. But J.R. Holden made some big shots at the end of the first half. Then we started the second half with two or three great shots and some strong defense. We came back into the game and just showed our character. They are a great team. But we are experienced and we know how to play this kind of game. Coach told us at halftime to just keep believing in what we have been doing for the past three years. We are still in the game and it's not clever to change something at halftime. We just have to believe in what we do. If we lose, then we have to lose in our way. If we play like we can then we cannot lose. I cannot talk about the final now. Let me rest my mind and then we will look at them on Saturday.”
ZISIS, NIKOS CSKA Moscow “Tau deserves credit, they were really well prepared and played a very good game. I think we were completely out of our game in the first half. J.R. Holden made some big plays when they could have got a 10-point lead. If he didn't, maybe it would have been a very different game. We played better in the second half, but the game wasn't easy for us in offense. Tau is always a hard team to play against. In these kinds of games, big plays are always important. We need to have some rest, especially those guys who played a lot of minutes. It is going to be a big game. Maccabi has a lot of fans in here that give the team an extra boost. On the other hand, CSKA already beat Maccabi in the 2006 Final Four in Prague, with a lot of Maccabi fans there. Whoever is more focused will win the final.”
HOLDEN, J.R. CSKA Moscow “It was a hard-fought game right from the beginning. Tau is really a great team. We got our work cut out for us. I think we played well tonight. For the final, I just think we really have to play defense. Like we always say, defense wins championships. Tonight, for 40 minutes, both teams battled. But there were a lot of things that we still need to work on – inside and outside. But like I said, it was gonna be the team with the most inside points and I think we did well to get inside points in the second half. You always have to work hard for the first five minutes after halftime and set the tone so that you get a lead so that when they come back, you can afford their run. I think that was crucial for us.”
SISKAUSKAS, RAMUNAS CSKA Moscow "The first half wasn't so good and we didn't do what we had to do, I don't know why. The referees didn't let us play tough tonight and were calling fouls on every touch, so we had to adjust to how they judged. In the first half we got too many fouls, I think. Maybe we were too excited, because a semifinal is maybe more important mentally than a final. If you win the semifinal, it's easier in the final, but I am glad that in the second half tonight we did a pretty good job. Now, it's going to be a tough final, not easier than today's semifinal. Maccabi will have all their spectators. They are going to play like a home game. The gym is full of their fans. Of course, we'll try to win the game and get another title, but as I said, it's sure going to be tough. But we have one day to prepare."
SMODIS, MATJAZ CSKA Moscow "I think that our experience from the previous Final Fours helped us a lot. We knew we would raise our level if we didn't play the second half like we had the first one. We just believed in ourselves. The secon half was a completely different approach and I think in the end that's what decided the game. maybe also Tau got a little scared of actually winning a big semifinal again. Like I said before game, in the end, the little details decided it, because even when they were down 10 or 11, they still showed character and came back and never gave up until, basically, the last ball. I give a lot of credit to Tau, but we pulled it off one more time." "Once we're in trouble, we don't hide behind responsibility or back down or get scared of big shots or whatever. We just kind of stick together, which I think is a good qualty of this team, especially in hard times. When we're backed up against the wall, we show heart, we show team chemistry. Especially in the second half, we played better on defense, which I think was crucial in this game."
LANGDON, TRAJAN CSKA Moscow “Tau played a good game, it is a great basketball team. We knoew we were playing a tough game coming in, because we played against them twice and they knew hot to attack us. We made good plays and got off to a good start. We are fortunate that J.R. Holden hit some big shots to keep the game tight in the first half. We came out after the break and played the basketball that we want. Even when they made big plays in the end, we came out with the win. Maccabi and CSKA are two of the top basketball organizations in Europe, with very talented teams and great coaches. The final will have two teams playing good basketball. Right now, Maccabi has played the best basketball of the season. We know they can score the ball, as they had 92 points in the semifinal, so we will have to put a lot of defensive effort. We will try to get some rest tonight, because there is not much time for anything in the Final Four. This is what makes it exciting: Both teams haven't seen each other all year. We will try to play to our strength and it should be fun to play against them.”
GOREE, MARCUS CSKA Moscow "What made the difference in the second half is that we just started to play tougher and better defense. We expected them to play that tough and to give us a lot of problems. It wasn't easy to beat them tonight, but the key thing is that we managed to do that. Now we have the finals in front of us and it's going to be sweet. Surely it's interesting for me to face Maccabi again, but I just want to win it."

VAN DEN SPIEGEL, TOMAS

CSKA Moscow

“It was not our best game, I think, but we got to win it and that is the most important thing. You know that if you lose in the Final Four, you run out of chances to win, so we prepared the game well, some of our guys hit some big shots and really step up in the second half. We won, and now we want to win again on Sunday. Theo Papaloukas stepped up, but J.R. Holden kept us in the game and played incredible defense. David Andersen came up with some big shots down the stretch, so everybody contributed. We had five guys in double figures, which shows it was a team effort tonight. We face Maccabi in the final for the second time in three years. Both are two great organizations and looks like it will be like an away game for us. We have to be ready for it.”

PAPALOUKAS, THEODOROS

CSKA Moscow

“We knew it would be a tough game. The first half was not very good. Tau completely controlled the game. But J.R. Holden made some big shots at the end of the first half. Then we started the second half with two or three great shots and some strong defense. We came back into the game and just showed our character. They are a great team. But we are experienced and we know how to play this kind of game. Coach told us at halftime to just keep believing in what we have been doing for the past three years. We are still in the game and it's not clever to change something at halftime. We just have to believe in what we do. If we lose, then we have to lose in our way. If we play like we can then we cannot lose. I cannot talk about the final now. Let me rest my mind and then we will look at them on Saturday.”

ZISIS, NIKOS

CSKA Moscow

“Tau deserves credit, they were really well prepared and played a very good game. I think we were completely out of our game in the first half. J.R. Holden made some big plays when they could have got a 10-point lead. If he didn't, maybe it would have been a very different game. We played better in the second half, but the game wasn't easy for us in offense. Tau is always a hard team to play against. In these kinds of games, big plays are always important. We need to have some rest, especially those guys who played a lot of minutes. It is going to be a big game. Maccabi has a lot of fans in here that give the team an extra boost. On the other hand, CSKA already beat Maccabi in the 2006 Final Four in Prague, with a lot of Maccabi fans there. Whoever is more focused will win the final.”

HOLDEN, J.R.

CSKA Moscow

“It was a hard-fought game right from the beginning. Tau is really a great team. We got our work cut out for us. I think we played well tonight. For the final, I just think we really have to play defense. Like we always say, defense wins championships. Tonight, for 40 minutes, both teams battled. But there were a lot of things that we still need to work on – inside and outside. But like I said, it was gonna be the team with the most inside points and I think we did well to get inside points in the second half. You always have to work hard for the first five minutes after halftime and set the tone so that you get a lead so that when they come back, you can afford their run. I think that was crucial for us.”

SISKAUSKAS, RAMUNAS

CSKA Moscow

"The first half wasn't so good and we didn't do what we had to do, I don't know why. The referees didn't let us play tough tonight and were calling fouls on every touch, so we had to adjust to how they judged. In the first half we got too many fouls, I think. Maybe we were too excited, because a semifinal is maybe more important mentally than a final. If you win the semifinal, it's easier in the final, but I am glad that in the second half tonight we did a pretty good job. Now, it's going to be a tough final, not easier than today's semifinal. Maccabi will have all their spectators. They are going to play like a home game. The gym is full of their fans. Of course, we'll try to win the game and get another title, but as I said, it's sure going to be tough. But we have one day to prepare."

SMODIS, MATJAZ

CSKA Moscow

"I think that our experience from the previous Final Fours helped us a lot. We knew we would raise our level if we didn't play the second half like we had the first one. We just believed in ourselves. The secon half was a completely different approach and I think in the end that's what decided the game. maybe also Tau got a little scared of actually winning a big semifinal again. Like I said before game, in the end, the little details decided it, because even when they were down 10 or 11, they still showed character and came back and never gave up until, basically, the last ball. I give a lot of credit to Tau, but we pulled it off one more time."

"Once we're in trouble, we don't hide behind responsibility or back down or get scared of big shots or whatever. We just kind of stick together, which I think is a good qualty of this team, especially in hard times. When we're backed up against the wall, we show heart, we show team chemistry. Especially in the second half, we played better on defense, which I think was crucial in this game."

LANGDON, TRAJAN

CSKA Moscow

“Tau played a good game, it is a great basketball team. We knoew we were playing a tough game coming in, because we played against them twice and they knew hot to attack us. We made good plays and got off to a good start. We are fortunate that J.R. Holden hit some big shots to keep the game tight in the first half. We came out after the break and played the basketball that we want. Even when they made big plays in the end, we came out with the win. Maccabi and CSKA are two of the top basketball organizations in Europe, with very talented teams and great coaches. The final will have two teams playing good basketball. Right now, Maccabi has played the best basketball of the season. We know they can score the ball, as they had 92 points in the semifinal, so we will have to put a lot of defensive effort. We will try to get some rest tonight, because there is not much time for anything in the Final Four. This is what makes it exciting: Both teams haven't seen each other all year. We will try to play to our strength and it should be fun to play against them.”

GOREE, MARCUS

CSKA Moscow

"What made the difference in the second half is that we just started to play tougher and better defense. We expected them to play that tough and to give us a lot of problems. It wasn't easy to beat them tonight, but the key thing is that we managed to do that. Now we have the finals in front of us and it's going to be sweet. Surely it's interesting for me to face Maccabi again, but I just want to win it."

No pictures yet

There is no video yet

Spain: ETB 1	Slovenia: SPORTKLUB
Bosnia - Herzegovina: BHT 1	Greece: SKAI TV
Croatia: HRT	Poland: CANAL+ SPORT HD
Czech Rep.: CT4 SPORT	Italy: SKY SPORT
China: GUANGDONG TV	Pacific: ESPN
China: Beijing TV	Atlantic: ESPN
China: Fujian TV	Iberoamerica: ESPN
Belgium: BESPORT	Scandinavia and Baltics: Viasat XTRA 1
Hungary: SPORTKLUB	Turkey: 24
Romania: SPORTKLUB	Albania: SUPERSPORT
Croatia: SPORTKLUB	FYROM: MRT
Serbia: SPORTKLUB	Internet: EUROLEAGUE.TV