Fenerbahçe's men's basketball team lost 92-90 to Olympiacos in the EuroLeague Super Cup semi-final, missing out on a place in the final. Opposing head coach Georgios Bartzokas highlighted the Turkish side's defensive strength in his post-match comments.
Bartzokas said, "It seems neither team is as prepared as their coaches would like." The Olympiacos coach stated his team needs to improve communication, attack, and defensive organisation, and must avoid mistakes in such games. He noted his side had 11 turnovers and needed to make safer attacks.
Defensive Potential Highlighted
The most striking comment from Bartzokas was about Fenerbahçe's defence. The Olympiacos head coach said, "I think Fenerbahçe is a team with tremendous defensive potential." Bartzokas emphasised that Braxton Key and Nicolo Melli at the power forward position are unmatched in defence, rotational defence, and protecting teammates. He also said Fenerbahçe's tall guards do not allow opponents a good field of vision.
The Olympiacos coach said his team lost their main playmaker from last season and needs to be on the same wavelength with talented players like McIntyre, Montero, and Joseph in that position. He added the game was high intensity with many mistakes made. Bartzokas said he sometimes felt luck was not on Olympiacos's side, but they grabbed an important offensive rebound after a shot to score and found free-throw opportunities when they stole the ball.
For Fenerbahçe, putting everything in order is believed to be a matter of time. The team is considered a good side. They need to include Kostas Papapetrou in the squad and regain the injured Nikola Milutinov. The team's game components are expected to improve day by day.
Meanwhile, Fenerbahçe's football team sits 11th in the Süper Lig with 7 points from 5 games. Their recent form reads DDLWW. Their next fixture is at home against 17th-placed Eyüpspor on 20 September 2026.
This story first appeared at Hürriyet Spor
