Jasikevicius expresses coaching reality: 'Our job is miserable, we do not have time to celebrate' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: ZUMAPRESS.com-SCANPIX Credit ZUMAPRESS.com-SCANPIX

FC Barcelona (12-2) ended the week at the top of the EuroLeague standings after a convincing victory against Real Madrid (11-3). Nikola Mirotic had an outstanding game, finishing with career-high 31 points and also a career-high 39 PIR.

Player of the Game EFF 39 Nikola Mirotic Points 31 Accuracy 7-10 Rebounds 10 Assists 1

Sarunas Jasikevicius expressed his happiness after another win in the Clasico. The Lithuanian mastermind congratulated their players and also the fans.

"I'm proud of my players. They showed character, they fought, and they found solutions. We kept insisting. Our fans created an amazing atmosphere. We need more nights like this. It was a great pleasure to play here today. We will continue asking more of the fans", he said.

Jasikevicius had a special mention for Nikola Mirotic, the MVP of the game.

"It is easy for him to score 20 points. I always ask him to be a leader. For the team and for himself. He is extremely good in offense, but he should pay attention to defensive details," Saras added.

The 45-year-old coach praised his players for how they did on defense. Especially on how Yabusele was stopped, who scored only 8 points.

"We have defended well. Yabusele was their best player in the last few games. We always try to pressure. Despite his, details are really important, and we made fouls after bonus, we allowed some fast-breaks points, and we rebounded badly after their free-throws," Jasikevicius added.

Regarding the new addition, Dante Exum, Barcelona's coach, admitted he has been really helpful in practices.

"We do not have too many players available, so he gave us some fresh air. When a new player arrives, everyone wants to show their potential.

If he will use his physical abilities and be aggressive on offense, he will help us a lot. He showed us a lot. His first game, Clasico, with this atmosphere and jet lag... It is not easy. He will help us a lot," Jasikevicius praised the Australian.

FC Barcelona / Schedule

FC Barcelona Real Madrid93-80 Crvena Zvezda Belgrade FC BarcelonaTue18:00 Panathinaikos Athens FC BarcelonaThu19:00

Sergi Martinez did not score a single point in more than 20 minutes, but he played a good game defensively. That's why Jasikevicius recognized his job.

"He knows exactly how to earn minutes. He had incredible energy but was a little bit uncontrolled. He is defending well."

Finally, Jasikevicius admitted he doesn't have the time to celebrate as he did when he was a player.

"Our job is miserable. I have to think in the next game, just in 48 hours," he admitted.

On the other hand, Pablo Laso analyzed the game admitting Barcelona played better in the whole game.

"I would like to congratulate Barcelona on the win. We did not play well on defense, they have a great shooting percentage. You need to play a good game to win here, we have not been at our level today," he began.

Laso regretted not being able to find the rhythm during the game.

"They managed the game better, maybe because of the difference they got since the second quarter. We need to wake up quickly, it's simple. We play a lot of games," the Spanish coach added.

Real finished the game with a low free-throws percentage (11 out 21).

"We missed a lot of free throws, it is something we need to improve. It is impossible to win here shooting like this," Laso recognized.

Sanli missed his five three-point attempts, but Davies was effective in the mid-range. Asked about this, Laso confirmed it was something they knew before the game.

"They were smart, trying to avoid our centers from the rim. Let's say Vincent and Walter are more protective. Davies punished us. We know it, we should improve it on that and many other things," he concluded.

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