Greens and Reds followed opposite directions
Basketball is a funny old game. You may lead throughout the match like Olympiakos did at Milan and lose in the end due to a lapse of concentration in the last few minutes, while you may also trail for most of the game, like Panathinaikos did at Monaco, and still snatch victory with a last-ditch effort.
Greek teams in the Euroleague had diametrically opposite fate at the start of another double week, with Panathinaikos defeating Monaco away while Olympiakos wasted its lead to lose at Armani Milano.
The Greens won 91-90 in a gripping game at Monaco on Wednesday, thanks to a Marius Grigonis buzzer beater that will be remembered for years.
Despite its strong start, Panathinaikos found itself trailing by up to 15 points (60-45) with 14 minutes left. Yet it somehow managed to come back into the game and win it in the end thanks to the remarkable stamina and mentality of its players.
Kostas Sloukas scored 17 points, Mathias Lessort added 16 and Grigonis, scorer of the winning triple, made 15 on the night.
The Athens giant has now improved its record to 8-7 and moved up to sixth.
A day earlier Olympiakos lost 69-67, letting itself down after a great game that it should have won at Milan.
However Armani bounced back from 13 points down (35-22) and in the last quarter it evened things up with the Reds, to deprive them of an important road win.
The Reds are now on a 7-8 record, after having Giannoulis Larentzakis score 13 points and Moustapha Fall 12.
