Step by step and concentrating on tomorrow’s match, which is the most important thing. Laso does not want to get ahead of himself or make predictions too soon, but he knows that if the Palacio carries on being its talisman and the team stays unbeaten, it will go through in a position that will give it home advantage in the playoff. The coach spoke in the press conference ahead of the match against Alba Berlin and who, like his team, likes to see the Palacio full and getting behind the team, has said: “People are really supporting us and this has given us a feeling of safety”. Martynas Pocius has also backed up his coach’s comments, saying: “Alba Berlin is a dangerous opponent but we are playing at home and we hope that our fans will come to the Palacio”
Pablo Laso’s objectives are clear but he does not want to get ahead of himself. The season is going well, apart from a couple of stumbles, and he wants the team to keep its concentration until the very end. Despite this, the Madrid coach cannot forget that there are still seven matches to be played in the second leg of the Top 16, five of them in the Palacio where winning is a difficult challenge for visiting teams. In the press conference ahead of the match against Alba Berlin the coach was cautious but clear, like always: “Our aim is to be in the top four, something we have not achieved yet and which is necessary to move ahead in the competition. Once we have managed that, we want to finish first or second so we have home advantage. We always talk about how important the home matches are and if we maintain our form we will be looking at five wins in the second half. With 11 wins in the Top 16 we would definitely qualify and would have a good chance of being one of the top two. But I am more concerned about playing tomorrow and taking it one match at a time”.
Despite concentrating on the match against Alba, Laso admits that the Palacio strengthen his team. And the Palacio’s crowd even more so: “We are fairly solid at home, both in the Liga Endesa and in the Euroleague and this keeps us calm. The players feel very good in the Palacio de los Deportes and the atmosphere the crowd creates is very good. People are really supporting us and this gives us a feeling of security when we play at home but, apart from that, the team always has to perform well enough to win and, that way, our relationship with the crowd keeps growing. This is what we always try to do. We get a lot of support from the crowd and I always ask for that. It is very important”.
They will need all this support to keep up their good form against an opponent which Laso has not written off, despite its results. “For Alba and Bamberg qualifying for the Top 16 is already a prize. From there the impression I get is that they want to compete. We are talking about the best teams in Europe and so it is very difficult to win matches. In the end, they lost in the last second against Unicaja, and they have come close to winning in several matches. I respect this team; it is doing well in this competition. It is strong in defense; the match over there was not simple. In a competition with 14 matches the teams who get left behind start to take their foot off the pedal. But if I know Obradovic I think that this team will keep their level up because in the end it knows that it is good. We will have to be very alert. Unlike the match in Berlin, it is possible that Dedovic will play here. He is a very important player and offers Alba more of a chance of scoring from distance. The team has also developed new close-in plays for its players. Alba plays very well in the zone, they really look for their tall men and this will mean we have to make a big effort, not just our centers, but also in assists and rebounds”.
Finally the coach talked about the physical condition of his players and confirmed that Draper will not be there but, like in the match against Manresa, Pocius will. “In principal Pocius is fit, as you saw in the last match; he is not a hundred per cent, but he trained normally, and if nothing strange happens, he will be ready for the match. Draper will not be ready, though. We are going to make sure he recovers well from his Achilles’ tendon and we are going to use this week for that. I think putting him into the match against Alba would be pushing him too hard so we will see if he is ready for Sunday’s match. The others are all fine, with the normal twinges you always get at this stage in the season”.
The Lithuanian Martynas Pocius also confirmed what his coach had said. He talked about an opponent who, in his opinion, will not to be easy to beat, and also confirmed that the Palacio makes them feel especially comfortable. “Alba Berlin is a dangerous team. Their strongest point is probably their inside play, their tall players with Thompson and Miralles at the head. It is a team with a lot of players who can play around the hoop. We have to be aware of this, and be careful, because around there Alba can do a lot of damage. But this team also has very versatile outside players; people who can play under the hoop very well but also shoot well from distance. Alba Berlin is definitely a dangerous rival, but we will be playing at home and we hope our fans will come to the Palacio de los Deportes to support us because, with their support we will have a better chance of getting another win in the Top 16 and stay unbeaten at home”.
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