Panathinaikos left the packed OAKA in the premiere of the playoffs empty-handed. Maccabi won 87-91 to make it 1-0 and grab home court advantage. The match was attended by 18,000 spectators.
The second match will be held on Thursday night at OAKA (21.15), with tickets already sold out. Next week, Maccabi will play host to Belgrade behind closed doors on Tuesday and Thursday.
Panathinaikos was very accurate in the beginning and took the lead when it improved its defense: 43-32 in the 15th minute, with 9/9 two-pointers and 8/12 three-pointers, with Luka Vildosa as the protagonist. The half ended with 50-42 and the difference reached 12 points in the third period (56-44). The Israelis counterattacked after 64-54 and reduced it to 68-63, but two blocks by Kalaitzakis, K. Antetokounmpo temporarily gave new life to the “greens”.
However, Maccabi quickly tied the game and overtook with three-pointers by Colson, Brown: 71-71 and 77-81. Jerian Grant led Panathinaikos to a complete comeback after 82-87 with a three-pointer and a steal, but in the last minute Lorenzo Brown made it 87-89 at 34”, Kostas Slukas made an errant pass and Nimbo made the free throw with 2/2 shots.
Slukas finished the match with 12 points and 13 assists, while Matias Lessor was the leading scorer with 22 points. Ergin Ataman also used Vildosa 9, Grant 11, Nan 8, Kalaitzaki 2, Grigonis 11, Papapetrou, Hernangometh 3, Mitoglou 9, K. Antetokounmpo. Mike Batiste was among the spectators of the match.
From the Maccabi of the once “green” Oded Katas, former Olympiacos player Wade Baldwin recorded 15 points and 7 assists, before leaving with an injury in the fourth period. Colson 18, Brown 16, Nimbo 12, Rivero 9 also stood out.
Olympiacos will start their own campaign tomorrow night against Barcelona, who have the home advantage and will play the first two games in Spain (Wednesday, Friday). The bedridden Kostas Papanikolaou stayed in Piraeus and may travel at the last minute to play if he feels better. Thomas Walkup, who is feeling discomfort in the lower back, will compete normally.
The other two pairs of the quarter-finals are Real-Vasconia and Monaco-Fenerbahce. The teams that reach 3 wins will qualify for the Berlin final-four (May 24-26).
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