A big win in Monaco
Olympiacos got an important road victory over Monaco (80-89) and improved his Euroleague winning record to 9-4.
Our team made a good start in the Monte Carlo game, with Sasha Vezenkov and Evan Fournier quickly leading to a 3-5 score (2'). Thomas Walkup was the one to step up next (7-11, 5'), with the hosts though to take advantage of the inefficiency of the 'red & whites' defensive game and hence tying the score (19-19, 8'). Fournier had the last word in the first quarter, giving our team a 19-22 advantage with a 3-point shot. In the second quarter, the 'red & whites' found a new leader in Shaquielle McKissic. The American player and his explosiveness set the tempo for the Piraeus team (27-28, 14'), who were nevertheless falling behind in terms of their defensive game. The lead was constantly chaning hands, with Alec Peters and McKissic leading our offense and the latter scoring two impressive threes sending Olympiacos to +2 at the half-time.
In the third quarter, it was time for Sasha Vezenkov and Evan Fournier to lead our scoring efforts. A shot by the Bulgarian forward and a three by the French guard/forward gave a +5 lead to Olympiacos for the first time in the game (53-58, 26') that found better collaborations when in offense. The hosts reacted and got ahead 62-61 at 29' but only for a little while, since Goss and Fournier made the score 62-65, marking the end of the third quarter. In the last quarter of the game, two bad decisions our team made allowed Monaco to get ahead by one point (68-67, 33'), but a huge 3-pointer by Williams-Goss (68-70) and one assist of his for Milutinov to dunk the ball, put us once again in the driver's seat (68-72, 34'). A three-point recital ensued by both team (a total of 5 consecutive threes), with McKissic and Williams-Goss being the main executioners for Olympiacos (77-78, 36'). In the last four minutes, intensity and focus on the defensive end produces a 9-0 streak for our team (77-87, 39'), with Sasha Vezenkov scoring a decisive three-pointer and with 1:26'' on the clock. Walkup made good on his attempt to lay-up at 53'' before the final buzzer and hence the final 80-89 score.
The quarter: 19-22, 45-47, 62-65, 80-89
