With Walkup and Canaan stepping up, Olympiacos found a way to eliminate sour trend / News - Basketnews.com

Isaiah Canaan and Thomas Walkup discuss their solid performances against Fenerbahce, stepping up with Kostas Sloukas being sidelined, and an important change that might lead to eliminating an unpleasant trend.

Credit: Tolga Adanali/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images Credit Tolga Adanali/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

Olympiacos Piraeus began their double-round week without Kostas Sloukas and Alec Peters. The challenge ahead was far from easy – an away game in a sold-out Ulker Sports Arena against Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul.

Player of the Game EFF 22 Kostas Papanikolaou Points 21 Accuracy 4-5 Rebounds 3 Assists 2

Sloukas' importance is known to everyone, as the 33-year-old Greek is one of the Olympiacos' cornerstones. Meanwhile, Peters averaged 8.0 points and 7.4 PIR in the last five games, making 10 of 14 3-pointers in that stretch.

However, Isaiah Canaan, alongside Thomas Walkup, stepped up as big as they could, making Sloukas' absence barely noticeable as Olympiacos achieved a crushing 93-73 victory.

Both guards combined for 32 points (4/7 2PT, 8/14 3PT), 10 rebounds, 7 assists, and 40 PIR.

"This team is so easy to adjust to injuries and guys being out," Walkup, who finished with 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists, told BasketNews. "Everybody has a role. Everybody is stepping up, and we're not one-player dependent. Of course, we miss those two guys and want them to come back quickly, but at the same time, the way this team is built, and the way coach Bartzokas' system is, is that anybody could be out, and we don't miss a beat."

"I was happy with how we responded. Sloukas obviously is such a big part of our offense, but everybody stepped up tonight. Canaan played great today, Larentzakis played great. We had a lot of guys who can step up," Walkup continued.

For Canaan, it was the best game of the season, as he finished with 20 points (1/3 2PT, 6/9 3PT), 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and 21 PIR.

Interestingly, prior to last night's matchup, Canaan played his best game of the season against Panathinaikos. One might argue that on both occasions, the 31-year-old stepped up when it mattered the most.

Olympiacos Piraeus / Schedule

Olympiacos Piraeus Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv95-89 Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul Olympiacos Piraeus73-93 Olympiacos Piraeus Anadolu Efes IstanbulFri19:00

At first, he's done it against the biggest Olympiacos rivals, while on Tuesday, he softened Sloukas' absence in the best way possible. Is it just a coincidence?

"We are a team that has a lot of weapons," Canaan told BasketNews after the game. "Whenever my name is called, I go out there and do what I do. I'm just trying to bring energy and compete. Be aggressive defensively and offensively."

But it wasn't only the numbers that showed what both of them brought to the game. Canaan and Walkup made crucial plays when it mattered the most.

There was one stressful moment for Olympiacos. During the fourth quarter, the visitors' 25-point lead shrank to only 13 in a bit more than three minutes. For some Reds fans, there might have been an unpleasant flashback when the team wastes solid leads and eventually loses the game.

It wasn't the case this time, as Walkup made another huge play. Straight after the timeout, the 30-year-old hit a corner three, followed bySasha Vezenkov's free throw andShaquielle McKissic's 3-pointer that completely put the game to bed.

"The plan was Shaq's penetration," Walkup revealed the plan after the timeout. "My man stepped up, I had the ball with 2-3 seconds left, I shot it, and it went in. At the time, there was a lot of pressure off of my back. They really caught fire, and it was a big 3-pointer as we settled down again."

Olympiacos and wasting big leads was [or still is] a rather common story this season.

76-81 loss vs. Monaco, the biggest Olympiacos lead was 8 points in the 3rd quarter 82-83 loss vs. Valencia (16-point lead in 3rd quarter) 84-90 loss vs. Maccabi (11-point lead in 3rd quarter) 71-82 loss vs. Anadolu Efes (10-point lead in 3rd quarter) 75-77 loss vs. ASVEL (21-point lead 3rd quarter) 86-90 loss vs. Crvena Zvezda (12-point lead in 2nd quarter) 60-64 loss vs. Monaco (14-point lead in 2nd quarter)

6 of 7 Olympiacos losses came after wasting double-digit leads. That wasn't the case on Tuesday, as the Reds didn't crumble under pressure and secured a much-deserved win.

So, what was different about it this time, and could it be a crucial turnaround in this aspect?

"Definitely dedication on the defensive end," Walkup told BasketNews. "When they got down by 13, we really buckled down. I think we got 3 or 4 stops in a row, got scores on the other side. But it was really the stops [on defense]. Everything starts with defense. It gives you confidence and rhythm."

"If you look at some of our blown leads, it was like they were scoring every single time. We couldn't stop it. It was the defense that carried us [tonight]," Walkup added.

"We can't get too comfortable when we have a lead," Canaan noted. "We just have to play the whole 40 minutes and not take the time for granted. [We need to] just stay aggressive the whole game and not get comfortable when we get a lead like tonight."

Most importantly, both Canaan and Walkup remained consistent throughout the whole game.

Canaan hit three 3-pointers in the first quarter, which allowed Olympiacos to build a safe 14-point cushion against Fenerbahce, while Walkup dished four assists.

And even though the visitors led by 21 at halftime, everyone was expecting Fenerbahce to make a strong push at the beginning of the third quarter. However, Walkup and Canaan had other thoughts.

Canaan made a basket after an offensive rebound, Walkup added a 3-pointer, while Canaan hit another one from deep, and Olympiacos silenced Ulker Sports Arena once again by increasing their lead to 26.

"We were trying to stay locked in both defensively and offensively," Canaan said. "I made a couple [of baskets] early, and teammates have done a good job finding me when I was open."

As Canaan pointed out, there's no time to get too comfortable as Olympiacos will face Anadolu Efes on Friday, but the ongoing winning streak and a dominant win without one of the leaders definitely gives plenty of optimism in the Reds camp.

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