In a shocking “final” that had it all, Panathinaikos stayed alive in the title claim by beating Olympiakos in the 2nd overtime with 93-86 sending the series to Game 5!
Panathinaikos – Olympiacos: The match
The 4th final of the series reminded in the first minutes of the match and the beginning of Game 2, when Olympiacos had entered the game better and as a result took the lead with 5-11 having created problems in the offensive part as the “greens” had 2/8 in the first phase and 3 errors.
But a well-timed 3-pointer by Kendrick Nunn was enough to break the Gordian bond that had been created and followed by an 8-0 run by the American guard for a 13-11 lead. At the same time, the green defense was also very good, with the hosts closing the quarter at 20-16 having 3/5 two-pointers, 2/7 three-pointers, 8/9 shots, 7-4 rebounds and 3 assists for 3 errors, while Olympiakos (Fournier 5p., 3rib., 2ass.) had respectively 2/5 two-pointers, 3/9 3-pointers, 3/4 shots, 4-2 rebounds and 6 final passes but for the same number of errors.
The good defense of Panathinaikos continued even after the start of the 2nd period. Quite aggressive towards the Olympiakos players who did not have the necessary solutions. With a partial 9-4, he sent the score index to double-digit “edges” (29-20) having Kendrick Nunn in excellent condition and Dino Mitoglou (7 points-4 rebounds) helping significantly on both sides of the Glass Floor. In fact, it could have been at +12, but Jerian Grant’s free shot missed the target.
Olympiacos took a breather from Walkup (9 points) but did not get any closer, closing the half at -6 from Panathinaikos (40-34). Kendrick Nunn (18p., 4/7tr.) was the one who had made the difference, however he had managed to be charged with three fouls, including the third in the center of the field and without any reason. In the first half, the “green” had 8/15 two-pointers, 4/14 three-pointers, 12/13 shots, 13-6 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 errors, while the “red-white” had 4/9 two-pointers, 5/18 three-pointers, 11/14 shots, 11-5 rebounds and 8 assists for 5 errors.
The unpleasant news for Panathinaikos is that Kendrick Nan was charged with a 4th foul very early on, after the first three minutes of the second half. In a match in which the defenses had the first say, the +5 of the “greens” (47-42) did not stay long in the game. There was failure on both sides and bad choices in attacks. In fact, Ataman’s team’s solutions were reduced from the moment Nan was retired to the bench due to the fouls.
The many mistakes in the attack of Panathinaikos gave the opportunity to Bartzoka’s team to take the lead with 53-57 at the end of the 3rd period having run individual 13-23 in this period. Walkup (13p.) and Fournier (15p.) had raised his performance and had helped Olympiakos to have 9/14 two-pointers, 8/23 three-pointers, 14/18 shots, 15-5 rebounds, 12 assists for 11 errors, while respectively Panathinaikos had 13/24 two-pointers, 5/17 three-pointers, 12/13 shots and 10 final passes for 11 errors.
At 6:28 before the end, Kendrick Nan was sent off with 5 fouls and the offensive focus of the match changed on the part of Panathinaikos. Fournier and Walkup continued… unstoppable as the leaders for their team, even giving a five-point lead (61-66) in the middle of the last period. Toliopoulos, who had entered the match after Nan’s expulsion, reduced the score to 64-66 with a three-pointer and since then a barrage of missed attacks followed from both sides.
At 2:22, Hernangometh tied the game at 66 points and the score remained tied (69-69) after two 3-pointers by Vezenkov and Hayes-Davis respectively. At 1:17, Joseph missed a three-pointer from the corner and Hayes-Davis missed in turn on the green attack. A missed 3-pointer by Fournier followed, as did a missed 3-pointer by Juancho with 4 minutes to go before sending the ball into the iron and Vezenkov exhaling to send the match into overtime.
A 5-0 run by Vezenkov brought Olympiakos to +5 (74-79) with 2:28 before the end of the extra five minutes. Panathinaikos at 1:40 reduced to 78-79 and had a chance to overtake at 1:21 but Mitoglou’s three-pointer did not find its target. At 55” Vezenkov missed a three-pointer and an offensive rebound at 37” by Mitoglou from a missed three-pointer by Shorts tied the game (79-79) with 1/2 shots. Two missed three-pointers followed by Joseph (at 14”) and Toliopoulos in exhalation, with the result that Game 4 was sent to a second overtime!
Two baskets by Shorts brought Panathinaikos to +4 (83-79) and followed by a green +5 (86-81) with the American having all 7 points of his team in the 2nd overtime. At 1:59, Panathinaikos was again at +5 (88-83) with Vassilis Toliopoulos following Shorts and sending the difference to +8 (91-83) with a crucial three-pointer which was also the free throw for the green victory.
Olympiacos – Panathinaikos 2-2
Game 1: Olympiacos – Panathinaikos 82-76
Game 2: Panathinaikos – Olympiacos 68-58
Game 3: Olympiacos – Panathinaikos 102-92
Game 4: Panathinaikos – Olympiacos 93-86
Game 5: Olympiacos – Panathinaikos (13/6, 18:00)
The quarters: 20-16, 40-34, 53-57, 69-69 (q.a.), 79-79 (1st par.), 93-86 (2nd par.)
gazzetta.gr