By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Panathinaikos Superfoods Athens beat Olympiacos Piraeus with 70-62, bettering its EuroLeague record to 3-3. At the same time, the Piraeus side encountered its second loss in the season.
The key: Kenny Gabriel took charge in the beginning of the final period and helped the Greens regain the ethical advantage of the game. Despite Olympiacos‘ small outbreak, Lukas Lekavicius helped his team grab a double digit lead for the first time in the game (66-54), which helped them seal off the victory.
In the opening period of the game, Panathinaikos found the initiative with five straight successful shots (11-2, 3′), forcing Olympiacos‘ coach to call out a time-out way early. After a few scoreless minutes, Robers came in for the hosts with a goal foul, trimming the deficit to 6 points. After 10’, the hosts had regained control with 17-16.
A partial 9-0 run by the visiting side helped the Greens keep the advantage in the second period. Papapetrou drilled a long range shot, making the score 20-25, slowly pacing the Reds to a comeback. At halftime, Panathinaikos led with 35-30.
Two scoreless minutes were followed by Gist’s third three-pointer, though soon Strelnieks with two long-range attempts kept Olympiacos close with 40-38. With 2 minutes remaining in the third period, the score was tied to 44 points. A 5-0 run in the end of the third period kept the visitors alive with 49-47.
The stars: James Gist and Lukas Lekavicius were crucial for the winners, adding 15 and 14 points each.
Not enough: Janis Strelnieks was all over the floor for Olympiacos, tapping 18 points.