Vilnius "Wolves" started to climb out of the streak of failures that befell the team in the last couple of months and this weekend they will aim to extend the series without defeats, which started when coach Nedas Pacevičius came to the helm of the team.
Under the leadership of this young basketball specialist, the Wolves won three European Cup victories in four matches and Betsafe-LKL" in the championship, and the return match of the quarter-finals of the King Mindaugas Cup at Citadele ended in a draw, which rarely happens in basketball.
On Saturday, the capital's team (12-5), which occupies the third place in the standings, will meet the guests from Pasvaly in their arena - Pieno zvezdažių team (4-13), which, after the Gargžda team withdrew from the championships due to bankruptcy, occupies the 10th place among the 11 championships participants.
Meanwhile, next week, Wolves will finish their trip in Europe and will continue the season's struggles only in the domestic championship. When asked if there will be a lack of motivation to compete only on the national front, winger Eigirdas Žukauskas claimed that the team still has a lot to prove.
"I don't see how we could run out of motivation. During that month and a half, we "played up" very hard, so now we will have to make up for this period. There are still many games left before the end of the season. Therefore, its finish will be an opportunity for us to forget what was bad and to change the formed opinion that we have formed during the bad last months. Those losses were very depressing. Especially when we knew we were really better than we showed then. We just have to work focused and keep our heads down, go from match to match and at the end hope for the best result", said the Wolves basketball player.
E. Žukauskas shared his thoughts about the dark period for the team, the changes made by coach N. Pacevičius in the game, the points to be improved and the upcoming match with guests from Pasvali.
The team has come out of the mire of failure and is counting a streak of three consecutive victories during this period. Is the black period for the team over?
It is difficult to clearly explain whether everything is over. Maybe it also helps that we are not playing against the same level of opponents as we had in December. Of course, our game has also changed a bit. It's just not like there are any Great we introduced changes. We're just recovering emotionally, after a few better games, the weight off the team's shoulders that came with the growing number of losses. It really worked, but we won one game, we won another, then we got a new tone, a new energy and maybe we got into a rhythm again. We'll see how it goes.
What changed in the team's game after coach Ned Pacevičius took the helm?
There are some minimal highlights. We haven't had time for big changes yet. There were small details, such aspects of dance. The most important change is a different level of energy and better execution of the game plan and sticking to it. In basketball, especially when the teams are of similar ability, it's the small details that determine the final result. We execute better - we win, we execute worse - we are left with nothing.
After the last match, the coach said that the team has a lot of room for improvement. What do you think needs to be improved the most at the moment?
First of all, the most lacking is confidence in one's actions. And defense can always be improved. Here you can always find what to do more precisely - communicate better, change in certain situations, cut off the opponent from the ball, prevent him from receiving it. Again, these are small details, but getting it right can set the tone for a match and completely change the course of it. Just minimal things. But they are very important and they are permanent. You can talk about it after every match. Because we always plan agreements in defense, but when playing, you cannot predict all situations and not everything turns out the way you want.
On Saturday, a duel awaits with "Pieno žvajdůj" coached by former "Wolves" coach Aurimas Jasilionis. Is the game of Pasval's team at least somewhat similar to the one that the Wolves played for part of the last season?
In fact, we cannot compare our Pasvali teams from last season and this season. The characteristics of the players are very different. We had some advantages, they now have their strengths. Their team is being dragged forward by legionnaires. Lithuanians Simas Jarumbauskas and Martynas Arlauskas are playing well this season, now Tomas Lekūnas has joined the team. But the main burden is borne by the foreigners, who have the whole game in their hands.
You mentioned rival legionnaires. Their midfielder Kadeem Jack and defender Brandon Tabb are among the league's most valuable players, with the latter also the league's top scorer. Will stopping them be a crucial task for the Wolves defence?
I can't say that it's the main one, but it's definitely one of the essential ones. They are very important for their team, they are its engine. But we cannot forget the Lithuanians, who are in really good shape and show solid basketball. Therefore, both individually and as a team, we will have a lot to do in defense.
What are the main highlights of your team's play in this match that will be important for victory?
We will have to offer our intensity, aggressiveness. If we can keep it up for the full 40 minutes, we can expect a result in our favour. But if we come out even a little less aggressive, we don't talk defensively, we lose concentration, we burn out immediately. "Milk Stars" is such a team that if they get fired up, feel that they can play, then they will not give you anything, they will be very dangerous, they will start to hit even difficult shots. We will have to be maximally focused, be patient in attack and collect point by point, and do everything in defense to prevent the opponents from catching a successful wave. We have to control the situation on the pitch.
Match "Avia Solutions GroupArena between Wolves and Milk Stars will take place on Saturday, February 3 at 16.30:XNUMX p.m.
