Konstantinos Mitoglou, a basketball player for Panathinaikos, spoke before the Greek Cup final match where his team will face Olympiacos.
Panathinaikos didn’t have any particular issues against Aris and triumphed 76:65, thus advancing to the Greek Cup final.
With Mathias Lessort’s absence due to ejection with two technical fouls, the Greens found solutions in the performances of Kendrick Nunn and Konstantinos Mitoglou.
Mitoglou scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds, and throughout the tournament, he has averaged 16 points and 7 rebounds.
He admitted that their recent loss to Aris in the domestic championship gave them extra motivation.
“It’s true, we played more determined in this game, we were ready, our mentality was better, and we are happy to have won. Now, we have a very important game ahead, the final. This title is very important, it’s what everyone wants the most. There is definitely a lot of enthusiasm. We will give our all in the final,” Mitoglou said for Eurohoops.
Ergin Ataman, the coach of Panathinaikos, opts for a smaller rotation, which doesn’t pose a problem for the Greek players despite the tough schedule.
“We are not the only ones playing this way, it’s the same for all EuroLeague teams and all big teams. We have too many games. It’s the coach’s choice, as players, we have to play the basketball we know and do our job on the court,” said Mitoglou.
Their biggest rival, Olympiacos, stands in the way of Panathinaikos winning the Greek Cup for the 14th time in history. Mitoglou knows well that the one who wants it the most will ultimately emerge victorious.
“In the Cup final, it’s evident who wants it more and who is better prepared.”
The final between Panathinaikos and Olympiacos will be played at 18:00.