Aris- Panionios 67-63
Aris won the already relegated Panionios side way easier than the final score indicates. The home team despite their struggle after tip-off, finally got to the half time mark leading 38-22. However it was Tubbs who exploited his opponent’s many mistakes to bring the “Red and Blue” close to the game again, 50-40 after 30 minutes. Coach Priftis’ players knew they could not lose this game and put up an effort at the end to outplay Panionios and behind Vezenkov’s 21 points, they emerged victorious. For the visitors Tubbs had 25.
Apollon Patras- A.G.O.Rethimno 56-71
Offensively the home team faced many problems throughout the game and as a result, AGOR quickly got ahead 13-20 and did not give up on that lead until the end. The halftime score was 25-37, with the visitors defending very well inside the paint both on post plays and on drive conditions securing the win after the 3rd period (41-52) . The only player who stood out for the Greek Cup finalists was Fitzpatrick with 16 points while their star player El Amin scored 10. For the winners, Kalampokis was the top scorer with 14 points and Faye followed up close with 13.
Kolossos Rhodes- A.E.K. 65-72
It was a tough game on the road for AEK who found themselves trailing 19-13 at the end of the first quarter. Sakota’s team seemed to face many problems and was unable to find a good rhythm in the game, resulting to Kolossos staying on top 33-27 at halftime. Waters was in great shape for the home side and helped them maintain a double digit point difference (50-40) after 3 periods. However the turning point occurred during the last 10 minutes when the away side played intense defense, also managing to dominate on both paints with Mensah-Bonsu and Hairston leading the way. The 32 points the visitors scored within the last period gave them the big win away from home and is now looking to clinch a spot at the top 4 teams of the Greek Basket league since next week they face Aris. MVP was Malik Hairston with 19 points.
A.E.N.Kifissias- A.O.Trikala 81-72
Strong start for AENK that got in the game, got a lead right from the first period (22-12) and did not face any major threats until the end. Trikala’s defensive problems were clear, allowing their opponents to score any way they wanted, to reach the half time with the score being 47-33. From then on, AENK stepped off the throttle but the away team seemed unable to reduce the margin to single digits (64-50 after 30 minutes). They also seemed to give up on the game, allowing coach Papatheodorou’s team to walk away with the win, while Silas was the MVP with 14 points.
Panelefsiniakos- P.A.O.K. 58-69
PAOK did what they had to do to get the win against Panelefsiniakos. The visitors started the game very well and emphasized on their defense, getting a 10-16 lead, but they did not stop there, allowing only 21 points to their opponents until the end of the half, 21-39. Panelefsiniakos morale was low due to the very bad offensive performance, and tried to fight back with the same way, receiving only 10 points and concluded the 3rd period trailing 34-49. They did not give up and managed to reach the point difference to 7, 5 minutes before the end, but PAOK remained calm and finally secured the win, with Langford having 16, while on the other side Markovic scored 12.
Olympiacos- K.A.O.Dramas 72-62
Olympiacos did not try hard but managed to get the win relatively easy against KAOD. The “Reds” soon got in front and finished the first period leading 19-14 a score that put them on the driver’s seat throughout the first half, 36-27. Of course KAOD did not give up and were able to stay close mostly due to their good rebounding, but the home team was able to maintain a double-digit lead after 30’, 51-41. Printezis and Lafayette were solid during the closing quarter and did not allow the visitors to become a threat until the end. Lojeski was the top scorer for the winners with 13 points and on the other side Odum had 12.
Panathinaikos- Koroivos Amaliadas 79-64
Koroivos did not go to OAKA in order to give up without a fight and despite their bad offensive efforts, they stayed close to their opponents, 18-14 after 10 minutes. During the second period, Panathinaikos tried to find some rhythm and dominate but their shooting totals were pretty bad, helping Koroivos stay within 2 points, but the last 2 minutes of the half were enough to send them on the break in front 39-29. The “Greens” resumed the game with the same good pace, sending the point margin to 16, while Dimitris Diamantidis achieved another record as he overtook his ex-teammate Kostas Tsartsaris and became the player with the most defensive rebounds ( 1.506), in the ESAKE category. 58-40 was the score of the 3rd period, with coach Ivanovic using a lot of youngsters for the last 10 minutes and seemed to be satisfied from their effort. James Gist had 13 points and so did Marshall on the other side for Koroivos.
