Valencia Basket- MoraBanc Andorra post-game quotes: Pedro Martínez

20/10/2024

The orange coach remarked after the victory that, “the truth is I think it was a game in which so many things happened. First of all, I feel obligated to congratulate Andorra for the game they played. I loved them before, and now, having experienced it, I love their game and the tactical options they seek for their players. They have a variability that we, as coaches, were unable to contain, and I congratulate them for that. They’re going to win many games because today they could have won in a tight situation, and we weren’t able to find antidotes for Ferran Bassas in the second half or for Harding throughout the game. That’s the first point: Andorra played very well, with a lot of intent, and in the second half, especially the third quarter, they clearly dominated us, making it really tough for us.

 

Everyone has the right to choose what they want to take away from this, because everything is true. What a disaster that run of 6-30—into the fire, it was bad, and that’s true. Or to congratulate, which I’ve done privately, but also publicly now, to congratulate the players of Valencia Basket and obviously everyone who was in the arena for believing when we were in a position to throw in the towel and didn’t do it. I think that’s great because it shows that in basketball, and in anything, you should never give up. There’s always an option. It’s true that what we did—there were players who began to emerge with their talent. I think Jaime Pradilla at the end of the third quarter, when he scored five consecutive points while we were digging ourselves out of the hole, gave us a little life.

 

The start of the last quarter from Semi, who also made some incredible baskets, helped us hold on. Papi had a great moment too in the last quarter, hitting free throws and going inside, playing very aggressively. And then Montero, who had a very good game. So, these players stepping up, almost taking turns to withstand the storm, carried us to what the game ultimately became, because in the end it was a tight call—nothing else. We can talk about many things, tactics, what happened before, the players, the coaches, but in the end, many games are decided in those tight situations, on the knife’s edge.

 

Well, it turned out in our favor, and there’s a tactical explanation for that, let’s say. We took a good shot; Costelo made a good attempt to win the game, we missed it, but we got the offensive rebound—20 times, in fact. So, that’s something we like, which is reflected in our play: the offensive rebounding. I think that gave us a lot. But in those tight situations, I’m quite skeptical. I’m thrilled we won, but those tight calls are what they are. Luck plays a significant role, as we saw today.”


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