The Greens scored the first 6 points of the fourth quarter to pull away and never looked back
Panathinaikos celebrates after 81-72 Game 5 victory over Maccabi

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens ended its 12-year wait to return to the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four by overcoming Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, 81-72, in a very intensely contested Game 5 decider on Tuesday.
Maccabi had the better of the opening exchanges, but Panathinaikos was spurred on by an electric atmosphere to gradually pull back and it was tied, 41-41, at halftime. The third quarter saw plenty of lead changes, ending with the hosts up 58-56 before the Greens scored the first 6 points of the fourth quarter to take control for good.
Kendrick Nunn again led Panathinaikos with 26 points on 6-of-9 three-point shooting, while Kostas Sloukas, who ended the game injured, scored 15. Mathias Lessort netted 9 points despite missing 11 free throws and added 11 rebounds, while Juancho Hernangomez scored 11 and Ioannis Papapetrou contributed 10.
Lorenzo Brown led Maccabi from the backcourt with 19 points and 7 assists, and Josh Nebo provided power in the paint with 14 points and 7 rebounds.
Game Videos
The opening baskets came inside through Lessort and Jake Cohen, before John DiBartolomeo’s three gave Maccabi its first lead. Nebo and Brown stretched the edge to 4-9, but Papapetrou pulled Panathinaikos closer from deep. Cohen and Nebo were again on target to make it 8-15 with a 0-6 run, but triples from Nunn and Jerian Grant answered for the Greens. Hernangomez’s alley-oop layup and Sloukas’s transition bucket made it 19-21 after 10 minutes.
Nunn and Tamir Blatt traded triples to start the second stanza before Nebo and Jasiel Rivero netted inside to keep Maccabi ahead. Nunn’s jumper capped a 5-0 run for a 29-28 lead, and Sloukas added a three. Nebo’s putback and Antonius Cleveland’s lucky missed dunk which dropped in forced another lead change, and James Webb III’s triple made it 34-37. Sloukas scored inside and Papapetrou netted from deep, but Rivero was strong at the rim to make it 41-41 at the interval.
Brown’s jumper opened the second half scoring, but Papapetrou responded immediately. Bonzie Colson and Nunn traded three-point strikes before Sloukas and DiBartolomeo did the same for a 49-49 tie midway through the third. Nebo scored 4 points straight, but Hernangomez hit from long-range and Nunn scored twice from the line, 54-53. Blatt’s triple forced another lead change, but the Greens saw another swing as Hernangomez and Kostas Antetokounmpo scored from the line for a 58-56 lead after three quarters.
Panagiotis Kalaitzakis lifted the Greens with a steal and slam to start the final period, and Nunn’s three-pointer completed a 10-0 run for a 64-56 lead. Brown’s jumper ended Maccabi’s spell of more than 6 minutes without scoring, but Nunn and Dinos Mitoglou scored from the line for a 68-58 lead. Blatt and Brown triples gave Maccabi hope, but Nunn responded with his own three-pointer and inside score. Brown hit again to make it 73-67, but Lessort’s consecutive putback and layup kept the Greens comfortable, and Nunn’s stepback three sealed the deal to spark huge celebrations.