A win over Peristeri and an extension of the undefeated streak
Despite the significant absences, Olympiacos had no trouble defeating Peristeri 94–71, extending its unbeaten run to 16 wins in as many games.
Alec Peters stood out, for our team, finishing with 29 points on 4/8 three-pointers, while Vezenkov (suspension), Papanikolaou, Morris, Ntilikina and Tyrique Jones were left out of the 12-man roster.
The game began with a minute of silence in memory of the PAOK fans who lost their lives, while the players of both teams entered the court wearing T-shirts dedicated to the Panhellenic Fan Day with the message “no to violence.”
Giorgos Bartzokas started the game with Walkup, Dorsey, Ward, Peters and Milutinov, and the former Paris player knocked down a three-pointer to give Olympiacos the first lead. Thomas Walkup had an excellent start, making both of his three-point attempts and dishing out three assists in the first five minutes of the game.
Peristeri was extremely competitive in the first quarter and, with balanced scoring (9 different ones), took the lead (24–27) at the end of it.
In the second quarter, Tyson Ward returned to the floor at the “4” position, as Sasha Vezenkov was serving his suspension in today’s game and Alec Peters was Olympiacos’ only “pure” power forward. Cory Joseph scored from the corner for his first points in the Greek league, tying the game at 29–29, while Giannoulis Larentzakis, who also checked in, put Olympiacos back in front on the very next play.
Our team struggled with its shooting in the second quarter, but with Donta Hall dominating the offensive glass and extending 5 possessions, Olympiacos took a 6-point lead at the end of the first half.
After the break, Olympiacos continued to shoot poorly, but with Alec Peters becoming the second player in double figures after Ward, they found solutions to build a double-digit lead. In the second half of the third quarter, the 'red & whites' laid the foundations for a comfortable win. Dorsey and Peters hit back-to-back three-pointers, while Cory Joseph also found his rhythm from beyond the arc.
In the final quarter, defenses loosened up and with Alec Peters now unstoppable, Olympiacos saw its lead grow to over 20 points. Giorgos Bartzokas took the opportunity to give Joseph minutes at the point guard position, with the Canadian totaling 8 points and 7 assists. In the same stretch, Larentzakis (10 points with 2 threes) and Fournier (11 points with 3 threes) also improved their offensive output. All 11 players scored for our team, with Omiros Netzipoglou getting on the scoresheet in the final minute.
Alec Peters finished with 29 points to lead our team, as Olympiacos cruised to a 94–71 victory.
The quarters: 24–27, 44–38, 67–48, 94–71.