A win over Fener and off to Barcelona
In a packed Peace And Friendship Stadium, Olympiacos bested Fenerbahce 84-81 in the overtime (69-69 r.t), finishing the Euroleague regular season in the 5th place and will be facing off against Barcelona in the playoffs without home court advantage.
The game was also marked by Nikola Milutinov's return to action after two and a half months (due to injury).
Our team made a sluggish start to the game, resulting in the Turkish team building a 9p. lead (2-11) by 3'. However, everything changed when Isaiah Canaan ... lit up. With 13p. (4/5 threes and a free throw) the American guard led the 'red & white' counter attack and tied the game at 19 each with a buzzer-beater at the end of the first quarter. With good defense and Moses Wright and Shaquielle McKissic taking center stage, Olympiacos tried to set the tempo (31-25 at 16'), but the guests took advantage of the turnovers our team was committing and did not allow them to build a safety net (38-34 at 20').
The outlook of the game did not change into the 3rd quarter. Our team maintained a steady lead (53-46), without though never being able to completely control the tempo. And they paid for that... Fener dominated the rebounds, found score from the perimeter, ran a partial 12-0 and got ahead by 5p. (53-58) at 32'. Olympiacos put pressure on the back court, found solutions with Larentzakis and regained the lead (64-60). The opponent did not give up the fight and got to strike from the 3-point line once again, finding themselves in the driver's seat (+4, 65-69). With a two and one, McKissic made a one-point game for the 'red & whites' (68-69), while Goss got to tie the score at 69 making one of his two free throws and with 38.8'' on the clock. Both teams weren't able to score in the remaining time, hence the game went to overtime, when Isaiah Canaan got to (once again) perform a recital...
At 1:56'' before the end of the extra time, the Turkish team was leading by 5p. (73-78), however, the American guard had not said his final words. Running a personal 9-0 streak and with a steal at 6.2'' before the final buzzer (which sealed the win), he 'wrote' the 82-78 and 'finished' the game. Wilbekin closed in 82-81 at 0.6'' before the end, while the final 84-81 score was shaped with 2/2 free throws by Walkup.
Ignas Brazdeikis, Filip Petrusevn, Michalis Lountzis and Giorgos Tanoulis did not make the final 12-men roster.
The quarters: 19-19, 38-34, 53-52, 69-69.
OLYMPIACOS BC
FENERBAHCE
