Aris and Olympiacos return to the court on Sunday (September 13), wrapping up their participation in the “Neophytos Chandriotis” tournament in Cyprus with two tough matchups against Red Star and Maccabi Tel Aviv, respectively.
The final day’s action will begin at 3:45 p.m., with the “Emperor” facing Red Star at the “Tassos Papadopoulos – Eleftheria” arena. Vassilis Spanoulis’s team will thus face its second major test of the tournament, following a 92–87 loss to Maccabi, in a game where they clearly played better in the second half and were in contention for the win right until the end.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
The “Yellows” are still without Stefan Jović, who did not travel to Cyprus due to illness, while the injured Adam Mokoka, Stelios Poulianitis, and Giorgos Tanoulis are also sidelined. Spanoulis therefore has one more opportunity to see his team take on a EuroLeague-caliber opponent and draw useful conclusions ahead of the new season.
Shortly thereafter, at 6:00 p.m., Olympiacos will face Maccabi Tel Aviv in its second game of the tournament. The Piraeus team is coming off an 89-87 victory over Red Star, in a fast-paced game with plenty of offensive plays, where Sasha Vezenkov was the standout performer.
Giorgos Bartzokas’s team will once again be missing some players, as Tyreke Jones has remained in Athens and did not travel with the squad to Cyprus. Meanwhile, Kostas Papanikolaou and Tyler Dorsey did not play in the first game, as Olympiacos managed its roster as part of its preseason preparations.
They will face Maccabi, which defeated Aris 92-87 in its season opener. Thus, the second game for the “Red-and-Whites” is yet another important test against a EuroLeague team, giving Bartzokas the opportunity to draw new conclusions and continue fine-tuning his squad.
*photo source: Olympiacos B.C.
