Photo: EuroLeague Basketball

Panathinaikos defied the odds and advanced to the playoffs, where they will face the defending champions Real Madrid.

The “Greens” were on the brink of elimination, but a series of consecutive victories helped them qualify to the postseason.

Now, they want to return to the Final Four for the first time since 2012.

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*Yiannis Bouranis is an affiliate partner of ESPN and is being compensated for the use of ESPN+ affiliate links. The opinions expressed in his posts are his own.