Aris stood no chance against Panathinaikos who remain Greek cupholders. Full review of the game below.
An all-around game from Panathinaikos finally gave him the win in the 39th Greek Cup final, that took place in Irakleio, Crete. The Greens won their 15th Cup and stand first in the list.
Aris started the game very energetic, setting a high pace, with Bohoridis and Vezenkov in great shape, just like in the semi-finals. The lead was changing hands all the time in a very interesting first quarter than came to a conclusion with Panathinaikos leading 20-18.
Because of their intense effort during the first 10 minutes, Aris managed to stay close to their opponents and even took the lead on several occasions. Panathinaikos defended well in overall but their opponents could find the way to the basket almost every way possible. The halftime score was all tied-up at 40-40.
Fans of basketball expected a good rival, equal to the one that took place in 2005 between the two teams, again for the Greek Cup final, when Panathinaikos emerged winners (72-68). However this time the Greens had other plans. An explosive beginning for the second half, a tight defense and a great game from Curry, sky-rocketed the point difference to 28, with a partial score of 35-7 during the one-sided third period.
Aris was totally out of energy, and of course had no chance against a rampant Panathinaikos side and the final quarter had no real interest, with the fans of the Greens waiting impatiently for the buzzer.
A mediocre last 10-minute display from both teams led us to the final score 90-53. MVP of the final was Curry who scored 17 points.
For Aris, Bohoridis had a decent performance to the first final of his career, with more to come, since he scored 12 points and grabbed 3 rebounds.
Panathinaikos achieved the three-peat and now aims for the Greek Basket League title, with the Euroleague Final Four also in their sights.
During the Press Conference, coach Pedoulakis stated that his team’s defense led them to the win, while Diamantidis warned his opponents that Panathinaikos will fight for all the titles.
MVP Ramel Curry said: “All of my teammates were MVP’s”.
On the other side, coach Minic claimed that the first half belonged to his players, while the second one to him, taking the blame for the defeat, despite the fact that players and stuff did their best and even more so that they could reach the final.
