By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Kendrick Nunn and a strong defensive fourth quarter pushed Panathinaikos Athens to an 84 – 71 win over Partizan Belgrade. The Greens registered their fourth straight victory to improve to 14 – 8 while the Serbian side dropped to 11-11.
Nunn led all scorers with 21 points while dishing out four assists. Dinos Mitoglou contributed 16 points plus six rebounds for Panathinaikos who turned on the defensive mode in the last period.
“In the last quarter, when we improved our defense, we started to find fastbreak and transition points,” said Ataman. “And then we had a chance to break the game. They didn’t let us play our regular game but we survived until the last quarter, and then we did a great job, the correct way to win the game.”
Partizan was up 56 – 58 late in the third quarter but then Panathinaikos pulled off a series of successful defensive plays to make a key 8 – 0 run that put them up 64 – 58. A triple by Kostas Sloukas and a pair of free throws by Nunn gave the hosts a 71 – 62 lead with 6:12 to play.
Meanwhile, Partizan struggled to connect to the basket and could not approach by a shooting distance. Bruno Caboclo made it 77 – 70 and PJ Dozier misfired in an open 3-point attempt while, on the other end, Mitoglou gave Panathinaikos a 79 – 70 advantage with 1:15 to play, a margin that proved good enough for his team to secure the win.
Dozier had a tremendous all-around game with 16 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, and six steals for a Partizan team without star scorer Kevin Punter. James Nunnally added 13 points.
For Panathinaikos, Mathias Lessort had 14 points and eight rebounds.
Olympiacos derby incoming
As Partizan coach Zeljko Obradovic admitted: “It was a tough match, very aggressive from both teams. I think we lost it because of our mistakes and some bad decisions in the fourth quarter. I wish Panathinaikos the best”.
The Greens have had an impressive EuroLeague season so far, however on Monday they will play for the Greek League at home against their arch-rival Olympiacos.
Having won the first game of the Greek League regular season on the road against the Reds, with a win they will gain a huge advantage for the championship title, and Nunn who will play for the first time against Olympiacos after his signing with Panathinaikos commented: “I have seen what happens in the derby between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos and what kind of atmosphere prevails. I look forward to the game. We have prepared and we want to control this game”.