Dusko Ivanovic, head coach of Baskonia, spoke to the media ahead of the first game of the quarterfinal series against Real Madrid.
Baskonia seized the last chance to enter the playoffs. They defeated Virtus on their home court in the play-in, which secured them a spot in the quarterfinals and a matchup against Real Madrid.
“I am happy. We have to be well because it’s an important occasion for us. We will try to make it to the Final Four. The EuroLeague has been to tight this season that anybody could beat anybody. We must believe in ourselves and fight.
Real Madrid is the best team in the league, they won the regular season and deservedly so. They played great and have a complete team with many resources. In this series we have to look at ourselves, try to play better and believe in our chances,” said Dusko Ivanovic.
Baskonia player Vanja Marinkovic also shared his expectations ahead of the game against Real Madrid.
“We are very motivated. I think we deserved to be in the playoffs and now the team is very motivated to do a good job in Madrid. We can steal a win there. We had a rough season with injuries, but I think the team has confidence now. All the teams have the same chances to be in Berlin. We are 0-0, no matter what happened in the past.
Real is a great team, they are the champs. I think we showed that we can beat them, we won in Madrid a couple of weeks ago. I think that game can be used as an example of how we have to fight against Real Madrid. We have to be at 100 percent until the last minute and look for our chances to win.”
The game between Real Madrid and Baskonia will take place on Tuesday at 9:00 PM.