Panathinaikos was decisive in the match of the year, defeating Maccabi in Belgrade with 95-88 led by Kostas Slukas and taking the helm back into his hands, since he now needs one victory in OAKA to reach the final four after 12 years.
The fifth and final match (2-2) will be played next Tuesday or Wednesday at OAKA, which is expected to be flooded by 20,000 fans. Never in the history of the Euroleague has the home team been defeated in the fifth match.
The match was played from the start at the pace that Maccabi likes, who finished the first half with 0 turnovers and a slim lead: 50-49, from the initial 12-20. Panathinaikos reached 50-55 with three-pointers by Papapetrou, Slukas at the start of the second half and responded with a 0-6 run (Mitoglou, Slukas) and dynamic defense (Kalaitzakis) when Blatt equalized: 68-74 from 68-68. Lorenzo Brown led Maccabi to a total rebound: 82-75 with a 13-1 run at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
But Panathinaikos had not said the last word. Kendrick Nunn reduced it to 86-83 with personal actions, the Greek defense tightened and Slukas, Lessor gave a lead from the line. The decisive basket by the amazing Kostas Sloukas 1:01 before the final made Panathinaikos the boss of the match (88-93).
Slukas, absent in the previous match, finished the night with 20 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. Kendrick Nunn scored 16 of his 27 points in the first half, while Matias Lessor scored 17 points and Dinos Mitoglou 13. Ergin Ataman also used Kalaitzakis 2, Grant, Grigonis 8, Papapetrou 8, K. Antetokounmpo. Juancho Hernangomet was absent again, facing a health problem.
The Maccabi of the once “green” Oded Katas had their top scorer, Wade Baldwin, in their starting five, but he left with a relapse in the second period. Lorenzo Brown finished the game with 17 points, while David Blatt’s son, Tamir, scored 14. Niebo 12, Colson 14, Rivero 9 also scored.
Around 1500 Maccabi fans watched the match at Pionir Hall. Panathinaikos’ request for 250 tickets was rejected by the Israelis. Željko Obradović was among the spectators.
Earlier, Olympiacos crushed Barcelona in a packed SEF with a stunning 92-58 (McKissick 21, Fal 12, Williams-Goss 11, Kanaan 11, Petrusev 10) to even the series at 2-2. And in this pair the qualification will be decided in the fifth race, next Wednesday in Spain.
Real first stamped its ticket to the final four in Berlin (May 24-26) by “sweeping” Baskonia 3-0 on Wednesday night. The European champions won the third match in Vitoria 102-98 (Yabusel 23).
In the other quarterfinal series, Sarunas Jasikevicius’ Fenerbahce needs one more win to eliminate Monaco after yesterday’s 89-78 (Kalathis 13, Papagiannis 8, Dorsey 8). The score is 2-1 in favor of the Turks and the fourth match will be held tomorrow in Istanbul.
#Maccabi #Panathinaikos #Standing #Belgrade #sees #Berlin #OAKA
