The Opava basketball players managed to finish in Prague, but they continue to struggle
Five seconds before the end of the game, at 93:94, Pipes went for a layup, but Mokráň blocked him. Thanks to that, the Opava basketball players kept the lead, which was secured by Šiřina with a free throw. In the 17th round of the national league, Opavané won in the hall of USK Prague 95:93.
“At first, everything went as it should. We played hard and led ten to zero,” recalled Opava winger Radek Farský. “However, we gradually eased up and the opponent took over. The match was physically demanding and in the end it was decided by luck.”
Despite the win, Opavane are in need. They stayed at the forefront of the league until the eighth round. But since November 6, they have won four out of eleven games and dropped to seventh place.
Opava pivot Miroslav Kvapil admitted that they lack more discipline. What about that? “We’ve been trying to figure that out for a long time,” sighed Kvapil.
Opava’s performance shows a staff change, as Martin Gniadek and Radim Klečka left before the season. In addition, in the middle of this season, pivot Dontay Basset returned to America because of his knees.
“The departures are mainly felt under the basket,” admitted the Opava assistant coach Kryštof Vlček. “We miss Martin Gniadek, who stuck together even in difficult moments and was able to level him on and off the field. But that is the past. We won’t make excuses for that, we have to move on.”
Pivot Miroslav Kvapil confirmed that Opavský is missing another under basket player. “But it’s not about one pivot,” he pointed out. “We have mistakes in defense and attack. We’re leading by nine points, but we do some stupid things and suddenly we’re minus one.”
And so Opava lost both games against NH Ostrava in the regular part of this year’s league after nine seasons. “It happened, but I believe that something like this will not happen again for a long time,” said Miroslav Kvapil.
“The season is still long. We don’t lay down our weapons,” said Kryštof Vlček. He admitted that the club management is trying to improve the team. “But it also depends on the economic possibilities of the club,” he added.
Opava’s current failures hurt all the more because Nymburk is the most vulnerable in the past twenty years, since 2003, when it was beaten in the final by Opava – in which it already has six league defeats. “That’s true, but if anyone thinks that Nymburk is no longer the biggest favorite for the title, then let me bet on a beer. I like beer,” smiled Vlček.