With his…signature Frank Bartley the PAOK managed to leave the Gloria Sports Arena, in Antalya, on Thursday night (19/9) as a winner, against the Oradea (81-80).
He thus qualified for the final (21/09) for his third qualifying group Basketball Champions Leaguewhere opposite to the Turkish one Petkimspor will be looking for one more win to ensure their presence in the BCL groups.
The American guard was the leader on the floor for the “Two-Headed” and the one who scored a decisive three-pointer, shortly before the end of the match against the Romanians, with which the “black and white” took a strong lead in the match.
“There was very little time left, I think three seconds, someone had to take the shot, I had a chance to shoot a free kick. We all need moments like this and I’m glad we hit the target and we won”he commented speaking on the official website of KAE on the internet.
O Bartley he added, talking about the showdown with her Oradea: “We had to face a more experienced team than us, with players who were not all playing together for the first time and despite the fact that we had ups and downs during the match we tried hard, played well and finally found a way to win. That’s what counts in this kind of tournament, finding a way to win. We played great defense, especially in the last quarter. We are a team that fights and we will do that in the next game as well.
It is absolutely true that our psychology was strengthened by the victory. We are a new team. We had a difficult preparation and the victory in the first European game gives us confidence. We will be ready for tomorrow’s match as well. Our coaches will have a great plan for this game as well. And as long as we stick to this plan, we’ll be fine.”
For the battle against the Petkimsporpointed out: “Our opponent is a very good team. They have two very good guards, they have strong tall guys like Williams who has done very well in the first two games. If we stick to our plan, play our basketball and stay close, we’ll be fine.”
On a personal level, he said: “This is my seventh year in Europe, but this is what I’ve been working for all this time. Personally, I came here to play in the Basketball Champions League. I had also tried it a few years ago, but it didn’t work. Now I have this opportunity in front of me. I want to make use of it and help my team achieve its goals.”
Source: Sport Fm
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