By Eurohoops Team / info@eurohoops.net
Panathinaikos Superfoods Athens easily defeated 93-65 Khimki Moscow Region in the ‘O.A.C.A’ arena and after an important and needed victory on the road against rivals Olympiacos Piraeus, Pascual’s team got back to back impressive wins.
The star: Marcus Denmon was incredible for the winners. He started the game with 11 points in the first quarter in just five minutes and continued his phenomenal shooting the rest of the game (5/6 three-pointers at the half). Denmon finished with 24 points (7/9 3P). Nick Calathes added 11 points and 11 assists.
The first quarter ended 26-16 in favor of the ‘Greens’ who had the upper hand. In the second quarter, Khimki tried to cut the lead down to single-digits, but Panathinaikos with Antetokounmpo, Vougioukas and Calathes connecting even increased their lead to 19-points (46-27).
The Greek champions did not back down in the second half and continued playing incredibly well on both ends of the court, not allowing easy points but also scoring in a variety of ways increasing the lead to 26 points (57-31). In the final 10 minutes of the game, Panathinaikos controlled their lead and finished off impressively, a perfect night blowing out Khimki.
The key: Panathinaikos’ impressive start to the game was a catalyst for the rest of the game, maintaining a double-digit lead for 40 minutes. Their defense was also crucial as they kept Khimki to only 65 points. The home team also had 22 assists.
Not enough: Alexey Shved finished with 17 points for Khimki. The defensive effort of Thanasis Antetokounmpo against him was one of the most crucial matchups of the game and despite his 17 points, Shved couldn’t make a difference.