Coach Simone Pianigiani talked about the upcoming Maccabi’s game in Tel-Aviv before embarking on the trip from Milan. “We’re going to play in a place very tough against a team with the typical skills of a Maccabi team. Their players ability to play uptempo and run the floor will be highlighted by the atmosphere they can create at home. To stay in the game the mental side of the game will be the most important one. For the first time we play in a place where the strenght of the local team is fortified by home-court advantage. I’m curious to find out what we can do after playing face to face with the opponents in Moscow and Madrid. They come off two losses and the atmosphere will be worthy of a playoff game. We are not healthy or particularly brilliant but it’s the mental game what I will care the most about”.

Dairis Bertans said that “Maccabi is a completely different team from last year and is playing much better. We need to slow them down and force them to play at our pace, playing before their crowd like we did at home in getting the win over Barcelona”.