BC Khimki defeated FC Barcelona Lassa in the Euroleague Basketball Top 16 week 9 home game — 75-61 (24-14, 24-15, 13-14, 14-18) with 16 pts by Alexey Shved. The next game our team will play in Krasnodar vs. Lokomotiv-Kuban in a VTB United League on Monday, March 7. The beginning is at 16.00 msk.
BC Khimki: Shved (16 + 5 assists), Davis (13), Augustine (13 + 8 rebounds), Honeycutt (11 + 10 rebounds), Monya (8 + 5 rebounds), Dragic (7), Rice (5 + 7 assists), Koponen (2), Vyaltsev.
Post-game quotes
Xavi Pascual, FC Barcelona Lassa head coach:
"Congratulations to Khimki on this win. This is the very game you want to forget immediately. It was our worst game in the Top 16 so far. There was a moment in the game when the team played well, but overall we had a really bad match. We made 18 turnovers and played not well inside and outside. In general we had a very bad game. Compared to the first game in Barcelona, Khimki didn’t change many things. But it’s up to us as in Spain we played really well and tonight we played badly".
Justin Doellman, FC Barcelona Lassa forward:
"It was a very physical game tonight. We didn’t match their intensity as they played very well. Unfortunately we came up short. We have to learn from this and change our mentality next game and play more physical and mentally tough".
Rimas Kurtinaitis, BC Khimki head coach:
"First, I’m very happy we got this win because last month was really terrible for us. We lost in the Euroleague and in the VTB League. It was very important to win tonight because at the moment we have a priority to play in the Euroleague and are focusing more on this tournament. First we look how to win and then with a good points difference. In the end of the game, we had some difficulties with it, but anyway a win is a win and I’m happy about it. The second thing I want to talk about is perfect defense. I think it was one of our best defenses this season. We played really tough from first to the last minute and let such a good team like Barcelona scored only 61 points. It’s a good result".
Paul Davis, BC Khimki center:
"Obviously we had a very tough month in February and had only two days to prepare after a game in Saratov. We didn’t change any basketball stuff as it was all about energy, intensity and enjoying the work and the competition against each other and practice. We were fighting and came to the game putting all this towards Barcelona. It was a great start for us, but we played against Barcelona, one of the best teams in the history of Europe. If we want to be a great team, we should increase our lead from 15 to 20 and more. So when this team takes a step, you see a different level. It was a good win, but we can’t be satisfied. But this is a start and not good enough. Our goals are much bigger. It’s never been good enough. I don’t think about Barca’s play, but all about us. We were a different team than they scouted. It was all about what we did. They are a great team and gonna almost be sure to be in the Final Four like always. But if you want to be a top team, you should beat these teams and move on to the next. We needed a game like this against a great squad. We saw what happens and it’s all about energy and our attitude, but not all about basketball stuff. You always gonna make mistakes, but as you keep with energy and a good attitude with each other and just keep pushing, I think we can be in a good shape".