In a game that… broke hearts, Maccabi Tel Aviv managed to make the break in OAKA by defeating Panathinaikos 91-87, making it 1-0 in the playoff series. Meeting for the two teams in two days again at OAKA for Game 2.
What if the Israelis had trailed by double digits? They counter-attacked at the end and went ahead. The Greens stayed in the match, but in their last attack (where they were looking for an equaliser) Kostas Slukas made a fatal mistake giving the ball to the opponents, effectively ending the game for Ergin Ataman’s side. Struggle at Maccabi as Baldwin goes off injured.
Leading the way for the winners was Bonzie Colson with 18 points, with valuable assists from Lorenzo Brown and Wade Baldwin with 16 and 15 points respectively. On the other hand, for the “clover” Matias Lessor stood out with 22 points and Kostas Sloukas with 12 points and 13 assists.
The game started with a… crazy pace, with Kendrick Nunn being the protagonist for Panathinaikos scoring consecutive baskets, while on the Maccabi side, Jake Cohen was the most efficient. Something that was also evident at 16-14 at 6′ in favor of the guests.
The Israelis led by +5 (19-14) but the Greens had the solutions with Marius Grigonis scoring from a distance to equalize at 23-23. However, it was Katas’ team that ended the period with a narrow 26-25 lead.
In the second quarter, Matias Lesor took… action, causing a lot of problems for Maccabi’s defense. Thus the Greens managed not only to turn the situation around, but also to take a 37-30 lead at 14′.
Then Vildoza found a rhythm and with continuous long shots sent the “clover” to +11 (43-32) at 15′. The Israelis managed to stay in the game going down to 46-39 at 17′, with Ergin Ataman’s players going into the locker room for the break at +8 with 50-42.
Panathinaikos maintained a small lead at the beginning of the third period, but managed to find a double-digit lead again with +10 thanks to 64-54 at 26′. Maccabi had the answer and went on a 5-0 run to cut it to 64-59 shortly after. The “clover” saw the Israelis press hard, but they had the solutions offensively to maintain a safe distance, closing the quarter at +7 with 70-63.
In the last period, Maccabi started its counterattack. He may even have seen Baldwin leave clutching his leg, but he was able to not only tie the game, but also go ahead with 81-77 at 34′.
The Israelis continued to have the lead and score with Colson as the protagonist, reaching +5 (87-82) at 38′. However, Grant and Nunn tied the game at 87-87 at 39′. Brown with a difficult basket made it 89-87 and in the next phase Slukas made a fatal mistake. Nimbo hit the shots and thus the final 91-87 gave Maccabi the break.
