Olympiacos Piraeus team captain Kostas Papanikolaou drew on all his experience to steer his side past Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul in their enthralling playoff matchup, as the Greek side clinched the best-of-five series 3-2 to reach the 2023 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Kaunas, Lithuania.
In Tuesday’s Game 5, the 32-year-old forward posted a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double – just his third-ever double-double in 318 EuroLeague appearances – as Olympiacos beat the Turkish visitors 84-72 at Peace and Friendship Stadium. Fenerbahce forced a Game 5 by winning Game 4 back in Istanbul, but Papanikolaou got the Reds off to a strong start in Piraeus with an effervescent first quarter. In the opening 10 minutes, Papanikolaou scored 10 points without missing a shot, galvanizing a fervent home crowd.
The skipper steered his ship masterfully, having done heaps of hard defensive work which unleashed Kostas Sloukas and Sasha Vezenkov on offense. Papanikolaou showed nerves of steel and the selflessness of a leader which catapulted Olympiacos into the business end of the competition, as the Greek giant now aims for its fourth EuroLeague title.
