Panathinaikos continued their tight grip on top spot in Greece by beating the team they ousted in the Greek Cup final. Olympiacos though are still in the hunt in case the Greens slip up.
P.A.O.K- A.O.Trikala 82-77
Difficult win for PAOK against Trikala team that made a great effort. The home team got in the game strong and got a decent 23-12 lead by the end of the first quarter since they played very well on both ends of the court. The visitors soon recovered from the bad beginning and tried to catch up to PAOK. The momentum of the previous period, comparing to the great game Haralabidis had, kept “Dikefalos” in a safe distance (49-38), at the end of the half, after a very pleasing to the eye second quarter.
Trikala was not about to let the game slip away and started the second half looking to stay in a distance that allows them to have a shot at the game. The 3rd quarter was more slow-paced and it ended with Trikala trailing 56-49. The match turned out to be quite a thriller since the away side was behind only 3 points after Panou’s shot, but Haralabides secured the win after succeeding 2/2 free throws and winning the MVP award with 19 points.
Ilissiakos- Panionios 73-87
Panionios desperately needed the win against Ilissiakos who is positioned last to the Greek Basket League Table. They started the game very well, with McCollum leading the way and managed to take an 11-21 lead at the end of the 1st quarter. However Ilissiakos surprised Panionios, scored an amazing 33-17 run during the 2nd period and overtook their opponents, going to the locker rooms leading 44-38.
“Neosmyrniotes” recovered and got control of the game again by defending well, equalized 59-59 by the 30th minute and having Milbourne in great shape, overtook their opponents and got the win, with McCollum on the lead with 27 points, 5 assists and 5 steals, followed by Milbourne who had 22.
Ikaros Chalkidas- A.E.Neas Kifissias 83-81
Ikaros got the win with the help of their fans, boosting their hope of remaining to the division. The two teams were close right from the 1st quarter, in an open game that AENK got a short lead 20-23. Ikaros put more effort on their defensive work that paid off and gave them the 7-point lead 40-33.
Ikaros did not maintain his good defensive work after the break and AENK took advantage of it. Using their athleticism, they quickly overtook their opponents and closed the 3rd period leading 52-61. In a game that the lead changed hands several times, the visitors were not concentrated enough to hold on to the lead and Ikaros started the last period with a 9-0 run to bring the score to 61-61. The match was close until the end when Michalis Kakiouzis missed an attempted three-pointer and Gagaloudis put an end to the game from the free throw line. MVP was Giannis Gagaloudis who scored 28 points and shared 9 assists in 39 minutes. Crocker kept Kifissia to the game with his 26 points.
A.G.O.Rethymno- Panelefsiniakos 85-69
AGOR may still have a shot at the playoffs after his great win against Panelefsiniakos in Crete. The visitors only lasted for one half, where they defended well forcing their opponents to many turnovers. This is how they started the game and after 10 minutes they were only 1 point behind 18-17. AGOR started setting up their pace and increased the lead to 9 (39-30) at the halftime.
The start of the 3rd period found Panelefsiniakos struggling offensively while AGOR dominated the paint controlling the rebounds and finding their way to the basket way easier. The score at the end of the period was 64-44. The away team gave up on the game and found themselves being unable to follow the home team that made a display of power until the buzzer. Kalampokis had 14 for AGOR, while Faye had another great display, with 26 points.
Panathinaikos- Aris 71-59
Panathinaikos had an easy evening against Aris who did their best but could not match the Greek cupholders. Aris managed to stay close to their opponents having good shot totals, as they usually do after the jump ball. 21-16 was the score after 10 minutes. From then on Panathinaikos got in full charge of the game, forced Aris to many missed shots and got a safe 44-28 lead by halftime.
The “Greens” kept dominating the court after the break, leaving Aris no chance to make a comeback, with Wright playing very well offensively. After 30’ the score was 60-40. Panathinaikos finally stepped of the throttle and let Aris cut the lead a little but they did not threaten Panathinaikos, Wright had 15 for Panathinaikos while Vezenkov had 13 for the defeated team.
Kolossos Rhodes- K.A.O.Dramas 70-76
KAOD played the way they usually do, good offensive tempo and many attempts to the basket, and finally dominated Kolossos in Rhodes. The away side started strong, taking many open shots, and after 10 minutes they were in front 21-26. Kolossos tried to react but instead they gave more space to their opponents to run the court and extend their lead to 34-43.
The Rhodians seemed to have pulse and caught KAOD off guard, causing them to lose control. Eventually they equalized 49-49 and the quarter ended 51-52. From then on the game was on thin ice with KAOD leading and Kolossos following them closely. Finally the home team wasted 3 consecutive offenses and the visitors grabbed the chance and walked away with the win. Bavcic was the undisputed MVP with 26 points and 4 rebounds, while Papantoniou scored 13 with the Rhodians sharing the rock at offense.
Apollon 67-76 Olympiacos
Olympiacos got the better of a stubborn Apollon side, despite breezing clear in the first quarter. Olympiacos kept the pressure on bitter rivals Panathinaikos with this win.
Matt Lojeski led the reigning Euroleague holders with 16 points as the Reds improved to 18-2 while Apollon dropped to 8-12.