Uphill battle now for the Reds

Fenerbahce snatched home advantage away from Olympiakos on Friday with its win in Piraeus that has the best-of-five series tied 1-1 on the way to the Euroleague Final Four.

The Greek champion triumphed in Game 1 of the series on Wednesday thanks to a stunning second-half performance at the Peace and Friendship Stadium in Piraeus, winning 79-68 for 1-0.

The Reds were tight in defense containing the often frustrated Istanbul team of Greek coach Dimitris Itoudis and deservedly won, having Sasha Vezenkov score 19 points and Isiah Canaan 18.

However in Game 2 on Friday, the solid first period did not suffice for the Greeks, who went down 82-78, as the visitors had more chances to attack, with three times as many offensive rebounds and half of Olympiakos’ 14 turnovers.

Kostas Sloukas and Vezenkov made 18 points each, but the Reds’ foreign stars underperformed on the night.

All this means Olympiakos must go to Turkey next week and win at least one of the two games in order to stay in contention. Game 3 is scheduled for Wednesday, May 3, in Istanbul.