Michalis Lountzis comments on play that made Scottie Wilbekin furious / News - Basketnews.com

Michalis Lountzis talked about Olympiacos' upcoming game against Anadolu Efes and gave his take on the play that made Scottie Wilbekin mad last Tuesday.

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Michalis Lountzis responded when Olympiacos Piraeus needed him the most in Istanbul, where starting point guard Kostas Sloukas was down with an injury that will keep him sidelined for a few more days.

"It was a team effort. All the guys stepped forward. Maybe some of us played more time," the 24-year-old guard told the media on the eve of Olympiacos' clash with reigning EuroLeague champs Anadolu Efes.

"We are very happy that we achieved a great victory, but we have to forget about it. We have another big game at home, with our fans," Lountzis continued.

But the Greek international also referred to an incident that transpired during Tuesday's game and marked Olympiacos' triumph over Fenerbahce: Scottie Wilbekin's ejectionwith 3:56 remaining in the second quarter and Fenerbahce trailing 16-45.

The American guard received his first technical foul after arguing with the referees with 4:21 left in the second tally when he tripped over Joel Bolomboy's foot. He then wanted an offensive foul and protested against the decision.

25 seconds later, his game was over following a second technical foul after the contact he had Michalis Lountzis wasn't called a foul by the game officials. Fenerbahce coach Dimitris Itoudis received a technical foul for protesting the no-call, whileWilbekin raged at game officials and refused to leave the court.

Eventually, he left the floor in disappointment.

"It's not my fault that Wilbekin was ejected," Lountzis argued. "It happened. I fouled him, maybe I grabbed his hand a bit," he admitted.

With Sloukas missing, the young player will need to step up and give a helping hand to Thomas Walkup, Giannoulis Larentzakis and Isaiah Canaan. Against Fener, he only scored one point, but still contributed with two assists and three steals.

But now, the Vasilije Micic-Shane Larkin combo presents him with a new and tougher challenge.

"I am ready, as ready as you can feel going up against two of the best guards in the competition, if not the best. It's a tough job, and it takes more than one player for us to pull it off," he said.

Lountzis thinks there is no huge difference between Efes' guards.

"They have tremendous offensive prowess. They can shoot, they can go to the basket, and they can draw fouls. For sure, there has to be pressure on the ball, to get them inside the basket to reduce the chances of them scoring," he warned.

"But that's just words," he added. "We start from defense, and on offense, everything will take care of itself."

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