Olympiacos defeated Barcelona 63:59 on away court in the Game 5 of the EuroLeague quarterfinal series, securing their spot in the Final Four.
With this win, Olympiacos has secured a spot in the Final Four, winning the quarterfinal series 3-2. They have become only the second visiting team in history to win Game 5.
Expected to be a tightly contested matchup, the clash in Palau Blaugrana turned out to be exceptionally tight, with probably no one expecting a combined total of only 21 points in the opening quarter, where defenses prevailed. A two-point lead seemed like a double-digit advantage in such a situation, with Barcelona slightly more satisfied as they awaited the second quarter with a 12:9 scoreline.
The continuation saw a bit more efficiency. Willy Hernangomez’s scoring spree propelled Roger Grimau’s squad to a nine-point lead, threatening to extend it further. However, even after Barcelona’s second surge, led this time by Nicolas Laprovittola, the hosts failed to gain a more comfortable lead. Laprovittola, with 13 points, was the standout performer on both ends, but it wasn’t enough for Barcelona to go into halftime with more than a two-point lead (27:25).
Barcelona threatened in the third quarter to build a more significant lead, as Alex Abrines was accurate from three, extending the lead to eight. However, Olympiacos immediately responded and scored six consecutive points. Georgios Bartzokas’s team didn’t stop there. With the same intensity, they stifled their opponent and finally leveled the score – it was 40:40 after Kostas Papanikolaou’s three-pointer, concluding that part of the game.
They had a nice opportunity at home to take advantage of Filip Petrusev’s unsportsmanlike foul and gain a decisive advantage in the closing stages. That didn’t happen. On the contrary, Olympiacos stepped up, and Shaquielle McKissic’s three-pointer brought the Reds a two-point lead four minutes before the end. The same player then scored five more points in a row, putting his team in a very good situation. Papanikolaou improved it with a three-pointer, and the team from Piraeus was on the verge of securing a spot in the Final Four.
Barcelona had a possession to tie the game, but Laprovittola lost the ball, which Nikola Milutinov punished on the other end with a dunk, putting his team ahead 59:54 with 17 seconds left.
The top scorers for the winners were Shaquielle McKissic with 12 and Kostas Papanikolaou with 11 points. Nikola Milutinov also played a great game with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Nicolas Laprovittola led the home team with 19 points.
Barcelona will face Real Madrid in the Final Four, who previously defeated Baskonia with a 3-0 series sweep.
WE'VE GOT THE LAST PARTICIPANT FOR THE FINAL FOUR – IT'S OLYMPIACOS! 🔴⚪️#Euroleague #OlympiacosBC pic.twitter.com/QTai5YU62e
— Basketball Sphere (@BSphere_) May 8, 2024
BARCELONA – OLYMPIACOS 59:63 (12:9, 15:16, 13:15, 19:23)
Venue: Palau Blaugrana, Barcelona
Referees: Radovic, Javor, Nikolic
Barcelona: Da Silva, Vesely 6, Brizuela, Rubio 6, Kalinic, Satoransky 2, Hernangomez 9, Laprovittola 19, Abrines 12, Parker 4, Nnaji, Jokubaitis 2.
Olympiacos: Walkup 3, Williams-Goss 8, Wright 2, Canaan 6, Larentzakis, Mitrou-Long, Fall, Papanikolaou 11, Peters 6, Petrusev 5, Milutinov 10, McKissic 12.