Competing in the Turkish Men’s Basketball 2nd League, Eskişehir 26 Basketball has finally put an end to its bad streak in recent weeks. The Dragons, who upset their fans by losing 4 consecutive matches, both boosted their morale and gave the message “we are back” by defeating Güngören Doruk 74-54, which they hosted at the Martyr Anıl Gül Sports Hall on Saturday.
HE STARTED THE MATCH BADLY, BUT MADE A DIFFERENCE
The Eskişehir representative, who could not start the match as he wanted, fell behind 9-0 when he could not score in the first 3.5 minutes. The first period ended with the guest team leading 22-10.
The Dragons recovered in the second period and reduced the gap, but went into the halftime trailing 31-29. However, the reaction and energy of the team gave hope for the later parts of the match.
Eskişehir 26 Basketball took control of the game in the third period, which was very tough and had a high fighting power, and managed to take the lead 51-47. In the last period, the red-blacks exploded, showing a near-flawless performance in both defense and offense, widening the gap and putting an end to the bad trend by winning the match by 20 points, 74-54. The students of Coach Enes Akdilek, who got their third victory in the league with this result, will be the guests of ABB EGO in Ankara on Friday, December 12.
“WE WERE OBLIGED TO WIN”
Making a special statement to Milli İrade Newspaper after the match, Eskişehir 26 Basketball Head Coach Enes Akdilek candidly explained both the reasons for the bad progress and the effects of the new structure. Akdilek started his speech by evaluating the situation of the team in the last weeks: “We have been defeated for a very long time and four matches is a very long series for us. We actually started the league very well. However, injuries, departures and arrivals required us to make changes in our team chemistry. I say again, this is not an excuse; the last four games are “We played bad basketball for the first time.” The experienced coach underlined that the team was still in the process of development despite the victory against Güngören Doruk: “This match was not a match where I got what I wanted, but we took an important step towards winning. We have new players, we made seven transfers and we were able to put very few of them on the field. We are trying to play basketball in a different role, we will be better.”
WE WILL BE A BETTER TEAM
Referring to the fact that the match was played with low fan attendance, Akdilek gave a strong message to the people of Eskişehir: “There were very few people in the stands today, it is very normal. Because we could not give what we wanted in the last four matches. But we owed the fans a victory, it was more than enough. We believe that we are a better team than this city thinks, and we will reflect this on the field.”
SUCCESSFUL TRAINER WHO ALSO TALKS ABOUT TRAINING TEMPOS
“We will take the day off tomorrow and continue the preparations directly. We will present a much better team image. It is our duty to represent Eskişehir at the top.” He said. New transfer Alperen Demir: “He is a dominant big man, he will strengthen the basket area.” Akdilek also talked about the new transfer Alperen Demir, who has significant experience in TBL: “Alperen is a dominant big man with a lot of league experience. He will increase our power under the basket. We got little time today because he was not ready. It will take some time for the team chemistry to settle, but I know the patience is low. We will still be good.”
INJURED PLAYERS AND SQUAD STATUS
Stating that a player whose foot was injured and swollen in the Teşvikiye match could not play in this match, Akdilek said that he trusted the team’s capacity to produce solutions despite the shortcomings: “The absence of a player does not alarm us. Other players can compensate for this. We will play much more dominant basketball in the next matches. The road is long and we are looking forward, not back.”
DRAGONS ARE REBORN
This victory, which ended the bad trend, is seen as a new beginning for Eskişehir 26 Basketball. The Dragons are expected to present a stronger identity as the team finds its rhythm, the harmony of new transfers and the return of injured players. Coach Enes Akdilek’s words are a clear message to both the fans and the community: “We are working, we are developing and we will represent Eskişehir at the top as it deserves.
Correspondent: Kaan Sezer
