The Greens got the better of Maccabi through three quarters in a fast-paced encounter
Panathinaikos controlled the paint against Maccabi
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens overcame a slow start to brush aside Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv 95-79 in Game 2 of their Turkish Airlines EuroLeague playoff series, to even the tie thanks to a rock-solid performance in front of a passionate home crowd.
Apart from Kostas Sloukas producing his best performance in the competition and delivering a career-high 29 points, the home team profited from a high-octane tempo that saw the Greens overpower the visitors in nearly all segments of the game.
Panathinaikos won the battle in the paint as it collected 33 rebounds to Maccabi’s 27, including 12 on the offensive end. That resulted in a barrage of second-chance points, as the Greens outscored Maccabi 20-2 in that department.
Moreover, star center Mathias Lessort got the better of his counterpart Josh Nebo. Lessort posted 11 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists while putting Nebo into foul trouble. The Maccabi big man fouled out in less than 20 minutes with just 6 points and 3 boards.
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Panathinaikos was more efficient shooting from two-point range as the Greens made 24 of 35 shots (68.6%) from inside the arc. Maccabi converted 23 of 40 (57.5%).
How his team played left Coach Ergin Ataman confident that Panathinaikos would go on to win the series and reach the Final Four after bouncing back from the Game 1 loss and a poor first quarter in Game 2, with Maccabi carving out a 20-28 lead before the Greens roared back.
“We didn’t play good defense in the first quarter but after that we started to play good basketball,” the Turkish tactician commented. “Sloukas controlled the game very well, he found points and assists while Papapetrou also made some great shots.
“We got aggressive defensively and now we are headed for two tough games in Belgrade. Maccabi is a good offensive team, but we did our job tonight and I am confident that we are the better team.”