Weakened Bayern hold their own in Piraeus

Gave it their all until the end: Despite a very respectable performance, Bayern's basketball team lost 80:95 (47:49) to Olympiacos Piraeus on Friday evening. With a depleted squad and only one playmaker, the visitors put in a good first-half performance against a title contender fielding its best lineup. In front of 12.100 fans, the offense struggled from the third quarter onwards (14:24) against a physical favorite that did not relinquish its lead. Top scorers: Obst (21) and Mike, McCormack (both 13).

Next Thursday, the second Greek title favorite, Panathinaikos Athens, comes to the SAP Garden. But first, just 43 hours after Piraeus, the BBL leaders face Telekom Bonn at BMW Park on Sunday at 6 p.m.

Only one real point guard 

On Friday evening, coach Svetislav Pesic was missing three playmakers: Jovic (elbow), Hollatz (head injury), and Baldwin (recovery), as well as captain Lucic (muscle injury). This meant that new signing Dimitrijevic was the only real number one in the starting five for the first time.

Three turnovers in the first minute did not help calm the nerves, but the first baskets from McCormack, Obst, and Mike did (17:14/8.). It was a strong first quarter (23:21), but it already demanded a lot of energy.

Full Boxscore

Too many turnovers 

Mayes helped out at point guard, his three-pointer and others from Jessup and Giffey made it 34:26 (14th minute), with Bayern playing with guts. But the next twelve turnovers brought the now even more aggressive Olympiacos and the crowd into the game before the break; Dimitrijevic also picked up his third foul.

Bayern did not get off to a good start in the second half, with several missed layups, turnovers, and some strange whistles suddenly putting them double digits behind (49:59/23.). Milutinov & Co. also had a clear advantage in offensive rebounds (14:4), but Bayern fought with heart and closed the gap to seven points (78:85/38.). However, Piraeus' top star Vezenkov (I25/PIR 35) remained virtually flawless.   

Quotes: 

Svetislav Pesic, Head Coach FC Bayern Basketball: "Congratulations to Olympiacos. The final score is 95:80, which is a little too high; a ten-point difference would be more realistic. And when you hit 63 percent of your two-point shots and 42 percent of your three-point shots, you should actually have a chance to win. But our biggest problem wasn't defense, despite conceding 95 points, but our reaction to the physical contact and aggressiveness of Olympiacos' defense. They were always on the verge of fouling, and we have to learn to play against that. We had too many turnovers, and 21 turnovers produce fast breaks and easy points for Olympiacos. That was the difference, otherwise we were at a good level and were able to compete. (...) In the third quarter, we also made too many mistakes, including in pick-and-roll defense. And Olympiacos' experienced players exploited these gaps in our defense."