Panathinaikos defeated Alba Berlin on their home court by 84:75 in the 34th round of the EuroLeague, securing their 23rd win.
The Greek giant didn’t have any issues with injured players ahead of this game. On the other hand, Israel Gonzalez couldn’t count on the quartet of Johannes Thiemann, Matteo Spagnolo, Gabriele Procida, and Jonas Mattisseck.
From the initial ten shots, Panathinaikos only managed to hit two. On the other hand, the in-form Martin Hermannsson brought a 12:5 lead to the visiting team. The German squad capitalized on the somewhat relaxed approach of the home team to lead 23:17 after ten minutes of play.
Khalifa Koumadje was the first player to reach double digits in the middle of the second period, and thanks to him, Alba Berlin continued to lead 27:26. Although Panathinaikos took the lead at one point, Matt Thomas returned the advantage to Alba Berlin with consecutive points. With a better performance in the final moments of the first half, the hosts managed to enter the halftime break with a minimal lead (38:37).
During the third period, Panathinaikos managed to improve their shooting percentages and control the rebounding on both ends of the court. This led them to their most convincing lead so far, with a seven-point advantage (55:48). They then allowed the opponent to go on a 7:0 run for a new tie. There were a total of 13 lead changes by the end of the third period, and the Berlin team didn’t give up, as evidenced by the score of 63:60 in their favor going into the decisive final ten minutes.
When it mattered most at the beginning of the fourth quarter, Panathinaikos, led by the duo of Kostas Sloukas and Kendrick Nunn, created a 13:0 run, definitively breaking the opponent’s resistance and taking a 73:63 lead. This paved the way for a crucial triumph, as Alba Berlin had no response afterward, making the win for the Athenian “Greens” inevitable.
The top scorer for the winning team was Kendrick Nunn, scoring 28 points, while Kostas Sloukas contributed 16 points. In the opposing team, Khalifa Koumadje was the standout player with 13 points, ten of which were scored in the first half.
This marked Panathinaikos’ fifth consecutive win, definitively securing the second spot before the start of the playoffs. The Berlin team ended another unsuccessful season with a record of 5-29.
It’s worth noting that some pairs of quarterfinal series are already known. Barcelona will face the winner of the Olympiacos – Fenerbahce game, scheduled for tomorrow. Monaco will play against the loser from that game.