Lost in the details
Olympiacos lost to Panathinaikos in the 59-56 in the first game of the League Finals. Next game is on Monday (26/5, 19:45) at Peace and Friendship Stadium.
The game started with Giorgos’ Bartzokas players being unable to hit shot which led to Panathinaikos grabbing an early 19-6 lead at the end of the first quarter. During the second quarter, the Reds gradually erased the deficit, getting it down to 8 (31-23), but their being unable to hit free throws didn’t allow them to close the gap with the half ending 35-26.
In the third quarter, the team from Piraeus used a 10-3 run to get back in the game with a score of 38-36, but Panathinaikos aggressiveness helped them widen the margin yet again, closing the penultimate quarter with a score of 51-41. In the last quarter of the game, incredible defense by the Reds got them on a 12-0 run during a 6 minute span, that saw Matt Lojeski connect on a triple at the 36’ giving Olympiacos a 2 point lead (51-53). During the next 3’30”, however, many missed shots on offense practically ended the team’s hopes for a win. Panathinaikos went on a 8-0 run, got the 59-53 lead with the game ending 59-56 and Panathinaikos getting the first win in the series, making it 1-0.
Quarters: 19-6, 35-26, 51-41, 59-53.
Panathinaikos (Alvertis): Bramos, Curry 2, Fotsis, Ukic 4, Lasme 11, Mavrokefalidis 5, Diamantidis 9, Gist 11 (1), Maciulis 15, Wright 2.
Olympiacos (Bartzokas); Petway, Dunston 13, Spanoulis 7 (1), Perperoglou 15 (3), Papapetrou, Sloukas 2, Collins 7 (1), Simmons, Lojeski 6 (2), Printezis 6, Mantzaris.
JAMES GIST: «Panathinaikos had many turnovers tonight, but we won, which is the most important thing at this point. We might not have been good offensively but we played good defense, didn’t allow Olympiacos to have many second chances at shots or extra offenses which was crucial. Every game is special, it’s 40 minutes of concentration and effort to gain the victory. The first win is always the most important in this kind of games. If Olympiacos won by 20 today, we would be talking for different kinds of games that would follow. Now, we go to Peace and Frienship Stadium and try to find a way and beat Olympiacos in his home court. We haven’t managed to do that yet this year and it’s very important that we do it now».
GIORGOS BARTZOKAS: «We have to takeaway three things from today’s game. The first is that we started the game, unprepared, unfocused and hesitant. The second is our effort up until the last minute. The third one is the fact that in the last minute we had two turnovers on offense and two failed defensive efforts. The momentum seemed to be on our side, since we reached a point where whoever was on the wrong side of the scoreboard felt pressured and so Panathinaikos got the win. Congratulations to Panathinaikos, next game is on our court. Our job is to analyse the game, in order to return here».
The Greek coach later stated: «The pressure for a result gets to the players. I don’t care if there are 10 or 20 thousand people in the stands. If we had a chance today, it was because of how the game went. Panathinaikos had 1/20 three pointers, but we tried to not allow them to take a shot. If someone had told us that we would be up 2 points, a minute before the final buzzer, we would have taken that choice. However, we had 4 turnovers that gave the win to Panathinaikos. We missed shots, but there was also the difference in the free throws. In a game that’s decided by such a small margin, it is a factor».
Finally, Olympiacos Head Coach pointed out that: «It’s a long season and some players are in form in different periods of time. Our job, and every player’s job, is to make sure that he shows up ready».
MARDY COLLINS: «It was a tough game. We had a really bad start, I don’t know why. For some reason we weren’t ready, but we did a great job to come back and we stopped Panathinaikos. Unfortunately, we made some mistakes in the end that we aren’t allowed to make. We have to work and continue to try hard».