An almighty showdown in the quest for home-court advantage in the playoffs will see Panathinaikos (19-11) host Barcelona (20-10).
Game Notes: Panathinaikos vs. Barcelona
The Greens have won seven straight in Athens, while Wednesday's heavy loss at Fenerbahce left the Spanish team 6-8 on the road this season. To secure head-to-head advantage, Panathinaikos needs a victory by 9 points or more after suffering an 80-72 loss at Palau Blaugrana in November, with 17 points from Jabari Parker leading the way for the host. Both teams possess potentially decisive talent all over the court, with Ricky Rubio and Tomas Satoransky looking to set the tempo for Barca while Panathinaikos aims to win the physical battle through Mathias Lessort and Dinos Mitoglou. Quite simply, a must-watch game which could easily be repeated in the playoffs or Final Four.
- Barcelona has won its last 10 games against Panathinaikos, including the last four in Athens.
- Barcelona has won 13 straight home games against Panathinaikos dating back to Game 2 of their 2013 playoff series.
- Barcelona and Panathinaikos squared off in the 1996 EuroLeague final in Paris, France. Panathinaikos edged Barcelona 67-66 to conquer its first EuroLeague title. Panathinaikos legend Fragiskos Alvertis led the way with 17 points.
- Barcelona and Panathinaikos have met twice in the EuroLeague Playoffs. In 2011, Panathinaikos beat Barcelona 3-1 without home-court advantage. In 2013, Barcelona ousted Panathinaikos 3-2.
- Barcelona center Willy Hernangomez is the brother of Panathinaikos forward Juancho Hernangomez. They have been teammates on the Spanish national team.
- The Hernangomez brothers and Barcelona's Alex Abrines were teammates on the Spanish national team, winning the bronze medal at the EuroBasket 2017.
- The Hernangomez brothers along with Barcelona's Dario Brizuela and Joel Parra together won the gold medal at the EuroBasket 2022.
- Barcelona center Jan Vesely and Panathinaikos point guard Kostas Sloukas were teammates at Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul for five seasons, from 2015 to 2020. They helped the team win the 2017 EuroLeague title and reach four consecutive Final Fours.
- Panathinaikos guard Kostas Sloukas shot three-pointers at a career-best 5-for-5 rate while playing for Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul against Barcelona in March 2019.
- Sloukas also tied his career-high with 7 rebounds playing for Fenerbahce against Barcelona in January 2020.
- Panathinaikos point guard Luca Vildoza has been a teammate of Barcelona's Nicolas Laprovittola on the Argentinian national team. Together they won the silver medal at the 2019 Basketball World Cup.
- Panathinaikos center Aleksander Balcerowski and Barcelona's Oriol Pauli were teammates at Gran Canaria for three seasons, from 2017 to 2020.
- Panathinaikos guard Marius Grigonis has been a teammate of Barcelona's Rokas Jokubaitis at Zalgiris Kaunas for three seasons, from 2018 to 2021.
- Grigonis and Jokubaitis have also been teammates on the Lithuanian national team.
- Panathinaikos forward Ioannis Papapetrou set a career-high with 4 steals against Barcelona in January 2019.