The home team’s head coach praised his men after a smooth performance in Round 14
Vassilis Spanoulis hails team Monaco’s character and defense after ALBA win
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AS Monaco head coach Vassilis Spanoulis was pleased with his team’s seamless display in a 100-80 home win over ALBA Berlin, as the result restored the French side’s confidence after Wednesday’s tough 80-89 loss against the visiting Olympiacos Piraeus.
The hosts dominated throughout, having dished out a barrage of assists and prevailed in the battle of the boards while shooting 70.3% from inside, 26 of 37.
“It was a great reaction from our team to show character as all the guys responded the right way,” Spanoulis said in a courtside post-game interview. “We shared the ball well and had 24 assists, which is a great number in the EuroLeague. Today we played great defense and it’s important to work hard on both ends of the floor.”
A flowing team effort saw Vitto Brown emerge as the player of the game, having paced Monaco with 17 points and 7 boards, while all 12 home players got on the scoresheet. Brown was visibly pleased after his telling input.
“It feels great, first and foremost to get the win but also to make a contribution,” he said. “The tempo was high, I actually got tired out there but that was the goal. Anyone with a competitive spirit doesn’t want to lose, so we responded well and we need to take this in continuing to go forward."
Georgios Papagiannis was a vital presence in the paint as he racked up 12 points and 3 rebounds, most of them in the first half when Monaco built a 20-point lead midway through the second quarter. The Greek center pointed out that his team took nothing for granted after ALBA’s 88-90 midweek win at Virtus Segafredo Bologna.
“It was a good one,” said Papagiannis. “We knew that ALBA can be very dangerous when they get their rhythm going, but we took them seriously from the start. The key was good defense and rebounding.”
In Round 15, Monaco visits Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul while ALBA is at home to Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade in what promises to be a pair of intriguing clashes in Europe’s premier club competition.