Sasa Obradovic: 'We don't need to feel the pressure to achieve something important' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: Roca Team-Direction de la Communication / Manuel Vitali Credit Roca Team-Direction de la Communication / Manuel Vitali

AS Monaco are going through an historical moment, since it's the first time that the EuroLeague playoffs are played in the Principality.

Dwayne Bacon

Team:Monaco BasketPosition:SG, SFAge:26Height:201 cmWeight:100 kgBirth place:Florida, United States of AmericaProfileNewsStatistics

Sasa Obradovic's squad won the right to play at this stage off the back of an exceptional EuroLeague run that included no less than 13 wins in 16 games.

Olympiacos Piraeus prevailed by 71-54 in Game 1 last Wednesday, but the Roca Team responded with a resounding 96-72 blowout in Game 2. With the series tied at 1-1, tonight's Game 3 promises to be both exciting and decisive.

Monaco have announced a sold-out at the Gaston Medecin for Wednesday's outing, something not so hard to achieve since the overall gym's capacity amounts to roughly 4.000.

"After the first two games, more or less, we know how we should play and how we shouldn't play," coach Sasa Obradovic commented.

The Serbian tactician thinks that "Olympiacos will be better prepared. We may have a slight psychological advantage from playing at home, but it's not a huge advantage because Olympiacos are used to this kind of situations."

Obradovic thinks that Monaco don't need to burden themselves with the need to exceed everyone's expectations, as they prepare for greatness.

"From our side, we must not 'burn' ourselves with the pressure of wanting to achieve something very important for French basketball. We have done an incredible job so far, now there is a chance to pass and we can't get miss out on it. In Monaco, passionate people have invested a lot of time and love in this club and this project, so winning this series would be a great thing.

It will be necessary to be both very intense and intelligent", said the man who reformed Monaco this season.

Yakuba Ouattara

MIN:13.95PTS:3.86 (52.13%)REB:1.75As:0.29ST:0.32BL:0.04TO:0.21GM:28ProfileEuroLeague2021/2022

Obradovic will wait until the last minute to see if Alpha Diallo, who sat out Game 2 with a muscle injury, will be available. In his maiden EuroLeague season, the former Providence standout has averaged 9.6 points (on 38.2% three-point shooting), 4.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.4 turnovers per contest.

If the 24-year-old forward is unable to dress for Game 3,Yakuba Ouattara, who helped Monaco regain balance in the first half of Game 2 when he hit two three-point shots in catch-and-shoot situations, could fill in for him.

Ouattara recalled that "during Game 1, Olympiakos had stifled us with superior aggressiveness. They will try to do it again."

The French guard says his team is aware "that we must not yield to their pressing. Our motivation is great ahead of this contest, and having our fans' support will be very important ".

Dwayne Bacon, who thinks all the pressure will be on Olympiacos ("I know for a fact that a lot of people didn't expect us to win Game 2. They're the team with the most history in EuroLeague, and I feel like the pressure is always on them," he told BasketNews), maintains that defense will be pivotal.

"We are focused, invested in our mission, we know that we will have to put as much intensity as in Game 2 to be able to take over. The key will be our defense and our ability to run in transition".

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