By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Vasilije Micic helped Anadolu Efes Istanbul bounce back from last week’s defeat and prevail over visiting Panathinaikos OPAP Athens 85-65 in Round 31 of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague.
Micic led the efforts of Ergin Ataman’s squad with 21 points, 4 rebounds and 7 assists, and with this win, Efes can officially qualify for the playoffs this week, provided that both Valencia and Baskonia lose their Round 31 games.
“It was not easy because we had pressure before the game that we had to win it. Today we showed something that is very important for us: defense. I think we had a problem with defense against Bayern in the second half – not with offense. Besides that, we had a very good game. We had contributions from every player, which is very important. Everybody who stepped on the court got involved in the game”, said Micic after the win.
After a balanced first quarter, Efes managed to pull away with a double-digit lead before halftime (43-33, 20′) and kept control in the second half to reach its 20th win this season in front of depleted Panathinaikos.
Adding up to Micic’s efforts, Bryant Dunston posted 15 points and 4 rebounds for the Turkish side. Rodrigue Beaubois had 13 points and five rebounds and Shane Larkin emerged in the fourth quarter to add 13 points as well.
Mario Hezonja paced the Greens with 14 points, while Zach Auguste and Konstantinos Mitoglou had 10 points each, even though Panathinaikos slipped its second straight game to fall to a 10-19 record.
Photo: EuroLeague