Corinthians coach and players assess Paulista quarter-final second-leg win | OneFootball

On the morning of this Sunday (6), Corinthians took the court at Ginásio Wlamir Marques, in Parque São Jorge, for the second game of the 2026 São Paulo State Basketball Championship quarterfinals, and beat their opponent 96-91. With the result, Alvinegro tied the best-of-three series at 1-1 and avoided elimination in the second game, sending the decision to a third matchup for a place in the semifinals.

After the game, moments after the final buzzer, head coach Jece Leite and some Corinthians basketball players spoke to the press right on the court at Ginásio Wlamir Marques. They celebrated the win, the team’s response especially in the fourth quarter, and also called on the fans to show up for next Tuesday’s decider.

Photo: Beto Miller/Agência Corinthians

Check out some of their interviews below:

Jece Leite – Corinthians Basketball head coach – to Rádio Coringão

1) Pinheiros’ quality and the difference compared to the loss in the first game: “They’re a team with a very high shooting percentage. Our team has great players, but we really underperformed, it was due to the circumstances of the game, it was one of those typical days, but it was a day below our average and today we managed to bounce back.”

2) The team’s drop-off in the third quarter: “We had a slightly different situation from the last game, when we fought back to tie it before halftime. Today we were ahead, and we knew they would come back looking to get themselves back into the game. And because of the way their team plays, their athletic profile, we knew they would push the pace against us. We did make some mistakes, really, but we managed to hold on, control their comeback, and impose our game plan.”

3) Betinho’s importance to the team: “It’s huge. Betinho is among the top 10 scorers in NBB history. He’s one of our main offensive weapons, but not just in terms of scoring. He’s a leader on the court, he’s very smart defensively, and he definitely causes concern for the opposing team. And it also shows how much he wants to play, because he’s still injured.”

Gemadinha – Corinthians Basketball point guard to Rádio Coringão

1) On the loss in the first game and the importance of the win in the second game: “We had a very poor shooting percentage there in the game in Mogi against Pinheiros. And we knew that. But we’re at home, we have the confidence of training here every day, the support of the fans, of everyone here. And we knew today was do or die, right? If we lost, our season was over. So we knew how important it was, we worked, studied every mistake from the other game. We improved. There were ups and downs today, but we managed to come away with the win. We’ve got a game here on Tuesday to advance.”

2) The drop in performance in the third quarter: “Basketball has a lot of ups and downs, so I think whoever manages to keep their level more consistently comes out on top, so it’s part of the game. They came back knowing they were down by 5, 6 points at halftime and that they had to do something different. They came back stronger, we struggled a bit, but we quickly got back into the game and got the win.”

3) The importance of the fans and calling on the Fiel for the third game: “I think anyone who plays here has to say the fans help, because it’s a different kind of energy. Anyone who truly supports Corinthians knows what Corinthians fans are like. So we want them to come to more games and help us. So whoever can come on Tuesday at eight o’clock to help us will be more than welcome.”

Elinho – Corinthians Basketball point guard to Rádio Coringão

1) On the win and the team’s poor shooting percentage in the first game: “Man, I don’t even think it was that much about defense, actually. I think we just had a really poor shooting percentage there. So I don’t think it was that much about defense. I think it was the offense, we attacked really badly. I think that was it. Today we defended better too. We managed to control things and attack better.”

2) Betinho’s importance to the team: “Man, it changed a lot. He’s very important to our team. He’s a guy who scores well, understands the game really well, draws a lot of attention, so that helps us a lot. Having him on the court is really great.”

3) Delayed image rights payments: “Man, it’s hard for it not to affect us. To say it doesn’t affect us, that’s just not true. When you work and don’t get paid for your work, it’s hard for us to accept that. But we knew it was going to be a tough year, those of us who stayed here accepted that, we knew it. So I think that’s it. We keep working, because it’s an honor to wear this Corinthians jersey, but we also expect a little respect toward us.”

Victão – Corinthians Basketball power forward/center to Corinthians TV and Tiki Taka Sports

1) The importance of the win and calling fans for the third game: “The win was extremely important today, an excellent win, we went after it, fought, battled the whole game. I’m here asking for your support, calling everyone out, everyone who can make it on Tuesday, come. We’ll keep honoring this jersey and fighting for every ball, and we know the challenge ahead of us. Go, Corinthians!”

2) A younger roster for the 26/27 season due to the club’s financial crisis: “I think it’s a slightly different season. If you look at all of Corinthians’ recent seasons, we always had one or two young players. But now, more than half the team is made up of young players. I think it’s long-term work, really focused on development, and that’s important.”

“Their day-to-day development, and I think we older, more experienced guys need to help them more and more. Everyone has gone through this, and the beginning of a professional career is very hard, figuring out what you do best, but they’re definitely on the right path and are dedicated.”

Tico Faria – Corinthians Basketball point guard to Tiki Taka Sports

1) Analysis of the win and the team performance: “I think Pinheiros is very strong, especially on defense. So we also tried to make things a little easier on offense, but I think the game was won on defense. Scoring 90 points, it’s f*cking hard to say it was about defense, but we gave that extra effort, especially at the start of the fourth quarter, and I think that’s the mindset for the next game: try to close out this series here, which is very important for us to advance, and I’m sure it’ll work out.”

Individual performance and overall view of the team: “In every game you can always score a little more, but I don’t care about that. I want to be on the court. If I have to defend, if I have to pass, if I only have to shoot when the ball comes my way, I’ll be ready. I think I did that well today. No matter what I have to do on the court, I want to be on the court.”

Next match

Corinthians and Pinheiros will face each other again this Tuesday (8), at 8 p.m. Brasília time, at Ginásio Wlamir Marques, in Parque São Jorge, for the second game of the São Paulo State Basketball Championship quarterfinals. Timão has 14 titles in the tournament and is looking to win it for the first time since 1985. It is worth remembering that, for a period, the sport was discontinued at the club and only returned in 2018.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.