Spahija on wasting 16-point lead against Zvezda: 'It's not serious for a EuroLeague team' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: D.Repečka Credit D.Repečka

Since the beginning of the season, everything went badly for Bitci Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz.

Player of the Game EFF 24 Luka Mitrovic Points 18 Accuracy 6-8 Rebounds 5 Assists 0

Dusko Ivanovic and Wade Baldwin IV did not get on well. Simone Fontecchio was incosistent. Rokas Giedraitis had to deal with injuries. The frontcourt was not enough despite Steven Enoch's eruption.

The team was broken. A few minutes before the game at Palau Blaugrana on November 11th, some players were sitting on the bench without warming up. Only Jayson Granger was taking some shots.

Ivanovic's time was done. The Montenegrin coach had to be replaced. Neven Spahija was the chosen one, being announced on November 15th.

The veteran mastermind tried to bounce back a team that was mentally out of shape.

In his first game, Baskonia outscored Crvena Zvezda 93-74, showing character and high pace. The Vitorianos won 8 of their 14 following games, including two impressive victories against FC Barcelona.

Unfortunately, a coronavirus outbreak stopped Baskonia's streak. They did not play for 14 days.

Since then, Baskonia are living a nightmare. They have just won three games in 2022 and did not qualify for the Spanish Copa del Rey for the second time in the last three years.

They are currently having their worst streak ever in the Euroleague with 8 losses in a row.

Baskonia wasted a 16-point lead in Belgrade this Thursday.

"It's not serious for a EuroLeague team," Spahija said after the game.

Despite a clear improvement, Baskonia could not get a victory either in Tel Aviv or Belgrade. They have only won two games on the road this season. Both in Germany.

"We made some unaffordable mistakes. If you do not have a physical second unit, it is difficult to win", Spahija added in the post-game conference against Crvena.

Baskonia ranks 18th in both offensive and defensive ratings in the EuroLeague. It's their worst season in the European competition.

If not for the Russian invasion in Ukraine, Baskonia would have 19 losses - the biggest tally in the club's history. Currently, the results against Russian teams are scrapped, therefore, Baskonia have 15 losses.

However, the EuroLeague presented a new alternative of classification, in which all the results against Russian teams would count, meaning Baskonia would have 19 losses once again.

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