By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Jerian Grant scored a EuroLeague career-high points and made four steals as Panathinaikos Athens defeated ASVEL Villeurbanne 85 – 67 at home to improve to 18 – 10. The French team dropped to 6 – 22.
Grant drained one of his 3-pointers to make it 64 – 55 during a decisive stretch in the game and then had another triple to put Panathinaikos up 77 – 63 with 2:20 remaining.
ASVEL, which had remained competitive for 34 minutes couldn’t overcome that deficit.
“We figured out things in defense at the end and we should continue like this”, said Grant adding about the upcoming game vs Olympiacos which can be decisive for the final regular season standings: “Everyone knows what that rivalry means, we are going to be ready”.
Panathinaikos got its first double-digit lead near the end of the third quarter when Marius Grigonis scored the layup to make it 59 – 48. ASVEL reacted but the hosts’ quality was overwhelming down the stretch.
Mathias Lessort had four straight points for the 71 – 57 as Panathinaikos entered the last lap of the match with a more than safe advantage.
Lessort finished with 17 points plus five rebounds while Kostas Sloukas delivered 14 points, eight assists, and five rebounds. Marius Grigonis had 14 points plus five boards for the hosts who were without Lucas Vildoza and Kostas Antetokounmpo.
For ASVEL, Nando De Colo scored 15 points, dished out five assists, and made four steals. Joffrey Lauvergne added 11 points while his team had to cope without Paris Lee and Michael Scott, having a 10-man roster.
A key moment
After this result Panathinaikos and Monaco are tied in the third spot of the standings with an 18-10 record, followed by Olympiacos at 17-11.
That’s why the upcoming match at Olympiacos’ home gym is more than crucial for the two Greek powerhouses. Panathinaikos will create a two-win advantage with a positive result over their bitter rivals, however Olympiacos with a win gets not only the tie, but also the tie breaker, having already beaten Panathinaikos at OAKA.