POSTGAME FLASHQUOTES GREECE - NEW ZEALAND

Pero Cameron (Captain, New Zealand): 

"I don't know what to say. To play against Greece in Athens, what can I say? It's a difficult task. We had a good chance at the start of the game, but it didn't work out for us.
As far as the semi-final, Greece is very good, but Puerto Rico, if they play great, who knows? Everything is possible. I think they can push Greece. They are tough, they have some very good individuals, so eventually it will depend on which team will show up more determined."

Dimitris Diamantidis (Guard, Greece): 

"We started the game very well tonight. We pressed the ball and managed to hit them on the fast break. That turned to our benefit and everything went smoothly from then on. There is room for improvement though, as we definitely have to avoid some turnovers.
Concerning the forthcoming game against Puerto Rico, they are a very good team that consists of some great individual players. They are also very unpredictable. We'll have to keep our concentration and stay focused and patient throughout the game in order to win tomorrow. "

Nenad Vucinic (Head Coach, New Zealand):

"First of all I want to congratulate coach Yannakis and his team for the win. They certainly outplayed us tonight. I wish them the best for tomorrow's game.
Greece is a classy team, extremely well-coached, so it's difficult to play them anywhere, especially in Athens. They played a terrific game. We came here to give all that we could and, if possible, to win the game. Unfortunately our shots didn't drop tonight and, since we are a shooting team -we face a size disadvantage with most teams- we didn't make it. Both teams did not shot the ball well tonight, which is common in do-or-die situations where the pressure increases."

Panayotis Yannakis (Head Coach, Greece): 

"I've always said that I have the greatest respect and admiration for New Zealand. For, they are a team that plays passionate and disciplined basketball despite their lacking size. If you let them open and allow them to do their own game, they will punish you. We pressed them from the start of the game in order to avoid letting them controlling the tempo. We built a significant lead and then we stayed in charge throughout the game.
We try to rotate our players so as to keep them fresh and ready to contribute whenever needed. Regarding the clash against Puerto Rico, we know what to expect. They are a great team, a very dangerous team and, as they have shown in the past, they can cause problems -or even beat- any team in the world; No matter if that team is the "Dream Team". What matters is the team as a whole, not the players individually. However, I have to admit that they have some talented players who have what it takes to carry the team on their shoulders. Regardless, we'll try to keep our composure and hopefully this will work out for us."

POSTGAME FLASHQUOTES PUERTO RICO - SLOVENIA

Larry Ayuso, Puerto Rico guard

On the game: "We played our best game. All players delivered today and we were in control of the tempo for 40 minutes."
On the forthcoming semifinal: "We play every game as if it was the last, no matter which team we are facing. Greece is a good team, its players have been playing together for a long time now and they posess a lot of talent. But, we are ready to play every game, whatsoever."

Daniel Santiago, Puerto Rico center

On the game: We played well and we feel excited about that. Slovenia is a good team and we really tried hard to make it."
On the forthcoming semifinal: "I am not there, yet. Greece is a good team and supposed that it advances to the semifinals, I hope we will give it a hard time. Greece has good perimeter shooters, but also reliable big men. They play as a team and to beat them we have to play good defense and control the rebounds. It will obviously be a big challenge for us."

Juan Jose Barrea, Puerto Rico guard

On the game: "We believed in the win and never gave up. That's our way to think in Puerto Rico; never give up. We played well on the defensive end and did a great job rebounding the ball."
On the forthcoming semifinal: "We are hoping for the best. We can beat every team, but lose to any team, too. Supposed Greece is our next opponent, we have to play excellent defense and take control of the rebounds. Furthermore, Arroyo and Ayuso should be in a good shape, as we are depending on them much. If we play Greece, the arena will be full, so we are going to enjoy it."

Sani Becirovic, Slovenia guard

On the game: "We had a bad game, didn't find our tempo and missed a lot of open shots. They played better, no question about that. The key of the game was the third quarter. Puerto Rico found many three-pointers and we didn't use our two fouls-to-give to break down their rhythm. We tried for the best, but didn't make it."

Rasho Nesterovic, Slovenia center
 
On the game: "Puerto Rico was the better team today and they deserve the credit.  Unfortunately, we didn't make it. We didn't play any defense today and faced a lot of trouble rebounding."
On Slovenia's absent players: "We didn't come in full squad, indeed. But, that's not an excuse. We were twelve men here; we have to calm down and figure out what went wrong."
On his decision to retire from the National Team: "I am retiring from the National team. There is a bunch of kids coming from behind that need to have their chance; they posess the talent, play already at high level and they deserve to play at the 2009 European Championships and aim for a spot at the 2010 World Championships, in Turkey."

POSTGAME FLASHQUOTES CROATIA - CANADA

Leo Rautins (head coach, Canada)

"Congratulations to Croatia, a well-coached, disciplined, physical team that did a good job of taking us out of our game and took advantage of our mistakes. I have to say about Rowan Barrett that when you invite an experienced player in the national team you don't always know whether or not he will deliver. But he did everything we asked him for, provided leadership in many different areas, and we loved having him with us. So hats off for him too".

Rowan Barrett (guard, Canada)

"We ran into a very good team today. They were disciplined, stayed with their sets, and played a good brand of basketball, so hats off to them. On the positive side, we beat them in rebounding, and overall this tournament has been a good experience for the young players of our squad. I assure you that Canada will be back. Canadian-born NBA players have supported us in the last ten years, and I expect them to do the same in the future. Some may have injury problems from time to time or may want to spend more time with their families, but they love to represent their country and I hope they will be back with the team. As far as I am concerned, I feel good and I want to go on contributing in the team, but you never know in life. In the last five years I wanted to play but I had injuries and health problems in my family, so I was not able to. Hopefully I will stay involved, either as a player or in some other capacity, not as a head coach though!"

Jasmin Repesa (head coach, Croatia)

"Thanks to coach Rautins for his compliments. I am satisfied with the way my team played for 35 minutes; we had much better continuity than in previous games. We suffered a bit in rebounding, and this is something we have to fix for the next game, which is going to be crucial for our qualification".

Sandro Nicevic (forward, Croatia)

"We knew Canada's biggest qualities lie in offense, so to beat them we needed to play great defense. We showed toughness and did not let them make easy shots, going ourselves for the fast break and the easy baskets in the other end. We showed concentration and came up winners by a big margin at the end".

Kresimir Loncar (center, Croatia)

"Before coming to Athens we were not playing well, but after setting foot here we have become better and better by the day in both ends of the court. We denied Canada 's good shooters, had a little problem on the boards, but overall I am satisfied and I believe we have a big chance to qualify for Beijing".