Kattash after losing Game 5: 'I'm not sure the best team won' / News - Basketnews.com

Oded Kattash named the elements that sentenced Maccabi to playoff elimination by AS Monaco. The Israeli coach pointed out that his team deserved to advance as much as their opponents did.

Credit: Alfonso Cannavacciuolo/GettyImages Credit Alfonso Cannavacciuolo/GettyImages

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv ended their Euroleague season after 39 games. The fifth and decisive meeting in Monaco ended 97-86 for the hosts, who made history.

Player of the Game EFF 24 Jordan Loyd Points 21 Accuracy 4-7 Rebounds 2 Assists 1

It was a disappointing finale for the Israeli side and coach Oded Kattash, who saw his team stay close up until the last stretch.

"It mostly hurts because we were there," he said.

"We led by 4 and made several mistakes in a row. We made adjustments and kept much better in the second half, that's where the frustration came from," explained Kattash.

It was the closest to a Final Four Maccabi have ever gotten since their unforgettable 2014 title run. Kattash believes that his side lacked experience and concentration.

"Monaco came in with pressure, aggressiveness, a lot of ability, and a lot of money," he pointed out.

"I feel that we wanted it a little too much. You can't blame players for over-motivation," the former player stressed, and praised Lorenzo Brown for putting together a performance of "tremendous effort."

"I shortened the rotation a bit this time. It may have been a little bit in our hands, but these are things that can be analyzed in retrospect," explained the coach, and mentioned that a lot of his players lack experience.

"We just had to be more solid and aggressive. We scored with a bad percentage, but that's also what made the difference in Game 4."

Kattash referred to the takeaway from the season, which is the fact that his players showed "heart and will."

"I'm taking with me a lot of experience and a lot of pride. We'll build something good here, with character and a connection to the fans," he promised. "We don't need more than that."

When asked if the better team was the one that advanced to the Final Four, Kattash replied:

"I'm not sure the best team won, but we have to respect Monaco. They deserved to go to the Final Four. We must learn from this experience and return.

I saw the fighting spirit and desire of my players. We really wanted that for ourselves and for the fans. I also think we deserved it. We are building good things for the future.”

Center Josh Nebo added that Maccabi achieved something big this season.

"We are a new team and proud of what we achieved, but It still hurts that we didn't make it. Let's hope we have another chance."

"It was a great series, back-and-forth battles," agreed Bonzie Colson.

"We should be proud of ourselves, we're all new here, I'm happy about that. Of course, we wanted to reach the Final Four, we'll learn from it and we'll come back stronger."

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