Ergin Ataman thanked Crvena Zvzezda fans for additional motivation, focus, and concentration.
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens pulled off a big comeback in their EuroLeague Round 7 game against Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade, overcoming a 14-point deficit to win 81-77 on the road in a tough environment.
Coach Ergin Ataman gave his team a pep talk at halftime, and it paid off, as PAO outscored their opponents 43-31 in the second half.
“I told my players that we play five-on-five on the court. Fans don’t play. In the first half, we were scared to play basketball, and we were scared to play defense,” Ataman said in the post-game conference. “We talked about this and that we need to improve our aggressiveness and fight.”
As always in Belgrade, the visiting team faced a barrage of loud chants and boos, and during Mathias Lessort’s halftime interview, lighters and even bottles rained down from the stands.
Hostility didn’t faze Ataman, though.
“No problem,” he shrugged off the atmosphere and boos toward him. “It’s happened in some other courts, too. Except some single words, I didn’t hear any bad things. The fans do their job. Of course, I’m the winning coach over the last 4-5 years. They like to go against me. I get more motivation, focus, and concentration in that atmosphere. So, thank you for that.”
With this win, Panathinaikos sit in a tie for second place in the standings with three other teams. They will meet Olympiacos in the EuroLeague derby next week.
