Reds and Greens go down in the Euroleague
After a week of four Greek triumphs in the Euroleague, this week both Olympiakos and Panathinaikos suffered their second loss in five games, although both could have escaped this fate.
Olympiakos lost 81-75 to CSKA Moscow in Piraeus on Thursday, but felt that its second-half comeback could have turned things around altogether against the competition’s unbeaten team.
Coached by Greek Dimitris Itoudis, CSKA was unstoppable in the first half and led by 16 at half-time. The Reds reduced the arrears in the last quarter getting as close as four points, but were definitely not favored by the refereeing trio on the night and CSKA made its quality tell in the end.
Giorgos Printezis was sensational on the night notching up 26 points.
Panathinaikos fought hard in Istanbul on Friday but succumbed in the second overtime to host Efes Anadolu with a 91-83 score.
The Greens led by up to 10 points in the first half (32-22) and by seven at half-time (42-35), but a disastrous start to the third period allowed Efes to recover and gain the lead, until the two teams ended regulation time tied at 70-70.
The first additional five minutes ended 77-77, but at the start of the second overtime Efes ran away with it (86-77) taking the game beyond Panathinaikos.
KC Rivers scored 15 points and Nikos Pappas 13 for Panathinaikos.
