By Eurohoops Team / info@eurohoops.net
After losing three straight games, Panathinaikos OPAP bounced back with an important -but not convincing- 75 – 67 win over Darussafaka Tefken Istanbul to improve to a 6-6 record.
Nick Calathes and Dinos Mitoglou were connecting early on, and so Xavi Pascual’s team built a quick 18-10 lead after six minutes. Eventually, after the end of the first period, Calathes had handed out six assists. With James Gist’s highlight plays, Panathinaikos went up ahead by double-digits to finish off the first half (43-32).
The home team was struggling in the third quarter, and so the visitors challenged and eventually came back. With Ogus Savaz’s lay-up, Burnak Ernak’s team cut the deficit to a single-point (61-60) and so the Panathinaikos’ fans started ‘booing’ their team for their poor performance. The game was tied with three minutes remaining (65-65), as ‘Daru’ was surprising the Greek team.
Despite the fact that the Greek team was up by double-digits in the first half, it was decided in the final minutes of regulation, as Darussafaka came back. Finally, thanks to its 10-0 run, the hosts responded and came out on top (75-65).
“After three losses in a row in the EuroLeague, it’s not easy to win. Today the good news in the end is that we won the game. We have to improve, but sometimes you have to win like this to take some confidence for the next games,” said Xavi Pascual after the game.
Dinos Mitoglou was Panathinaikos’ best player on both ends of the court Friday night. The 22-year old forward scored a career-high 20 points (7/8 FG) (5/5 FT), to go along with six rebounds and two steals. Despite his career-night, he remained humbled in his post-game comments: “It’s a team effort. Everybody did their best. We watched the video and tried to understand what the opposing team’s philosophy is. We decreased their energy level and we did really good.” Nick Calathes added his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 assists.
As for the losing side, Toney Douglas scored a team-high 15 points.
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