Xavi Pascual: "We played good in the third quarter"

The head coach of Zenit Xavi Pascual discussed the victory over UNICS (84:87).

— First of all, I’d like to thank the UNICS team for several reasons. Today’s game had a wonderful atmosphere. I also want to note how selflessly they played, despite the absence of Akoon-Purcell, Knight and Platunov. This wasn’t a surprise for us; we know UNICS is a team with strong character that plays at a high leve, and we were prepared for that. We were also ready for the hosts to score well in the second quarter. But still, we couldn’t control it, and by halftime, we were down by 7 points. In the third quarter, we played good, didn’t turn the ball over, and controlled the rebounds. We took advantage of that, which played a decisive role in the end. Look at the character UNICS showed — they almost caught up with us at the end, thanks to Kulagin, Toropov, and the other players.

— How did you manage to turn the game around in the third quarter? The players said that your words worked. What did you tell them?

— I’d say that’s normal. We’re still at the beginning of the season. In the second quarter, we made many mistakes in offense, defense and transitions. During the break, I told the guys to pay attention to those mistakes and the pace of the game. I emphasized that each player had to do their job individually, and that made the difference.

— What can you say about the condition of Bacon and Spellman who were the top scorers of the game?

— They’re getting better day by day. It’s only the start of the season, and they’re progressing.

— What is it like to have a player like Bacon in your team who can turn the game around in one moment?

— There are players like that on UNICS too. For example, Akoon-Purcell, who was able to turn the preseason game around. Our Bacon is the same type of player. Was I aware Akoon-Purcell wouldn’t play today? Yes, it was a surprise, but nothing unusual, because the season is long, and after such physical exertion, players get injured. In our team Moon had to sit out at the end of the game.