After the defeat against Australia, and in a very emotional context, Sergio Hernandez spoke about the level of the national team in Tokyo 2020 and about Luis Scola’s farewell.

“This is correct. We couldn’t find match size in preparation for matches or in tournament matches. There were some additional reasons, we are a team that needs a bit more preparation, as all this we are going through has not allowed us to prepare as we wanted to.‘” says Oveja Hernández in the mixed zone after meeting Australia, already a little colder, although the feelings surrounding him because of everything that happened are still on the surface.

Then he expanded his arguments:Garino’s quick departure from the team cut our rotation down a lot, a position where we don’t have a lot of experience. Something we never said during the tournament, because it seemed like an excuse, was that Dick wasn’t able to recover from the Covid disease that left him behind to prepare. Lewis with the 41-year-old had to pull the car hard in the first two games, with very nice wear, and Campazzo himself. Marcos Delia is the same, he played a great tournament for me“.

In this sense, the coach also praised the quality of the competitors he faced, Slovenia, Spain and Australia itself, who are athletic, tall and strong, so much so that at one point they were stripped of positions.

“Today it was a bit exaggerated, maybe also the emotional part, the nervous part, the part seeing that they got us under control and we were left out. The first half was a normal match, we even did some work, and then it fizzled out; But I don’t want to detract from Australia, they’re a great team and they’re ready for that, and they’re one of the favorites for gold. We lost to a great opponent, we didn’t play well today, we didn’t play well for most of the tournamentHappy Hernandez.

“We always have the same attitude, the same commitment, the same mentality, but we haven’t played this tournament well. We leave calm because the important thing is always to give everything you have, sometimes it works well, sometimes not so much‘, the coach highlighted. “We wanted to win the match. We wanted to play the semi-finals, but we were far from it. We lost 40 points, our biggest loss with this team. Not in the background, I don’t want Lewis leaving to look like I don’t want to talk about the game, but the truth is no small problem”

Farewell Scola

“It is very special. I can’t stop thinking about Lewis. It’s selfish, it seems I don’t care about the game, but we live many things. I hope to continue to live, as a friend or colleague, whatever. He is one of the great references I have in my life. With him I have known places … a bit like Leo Gutiérrez’s place in Peñarol, without whom I would never have known. He was the best and coolest player ever born in our lands. He took us to unexpected places. The only thing I can think of is to thank youOveja selector.

And if the great captain left something out, it would be a gigantic legacy, with one teaching after another, which Hernandez was responsible for recounting one by one:We all learned what work ethic is, and what honor work is. We’ve been taught that winning is important, but it’s not transcendent, and that transcendentalism is another story. We knew that today, after losing 40 points against Australia, we can be calm, that it is very difficult to lose 40 points in the quarter-finals and be calm. We knew it could be done. To honor what we do, but not for the sake of basketball itself, but every good person should respect what they do, and not make excuses.“.

“We will miss him so much, but he left the most important thing behind, and we will try to continue our path with this message and the lesson he gave us.“, I finish.

The national team and its future

After the national participation in Tokyo 2020, Ovega also reflected on his future as head of the national team: “I don’t know, I don’t know. The future of coaches is not the same as the future of players who rarely come back after their retirement. I’m a basketball coach and I’m going to see where life takes me. I just finished a course in the national team, I had a contract until the Olympics. Now to rest. Sometimes. My future depends not only on me, but also on what team in the world comes the madness of hiring me.”.

Photo: FIBA.
Note: Florencia Cordero.