By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Panathinaikos secured their spot in the playoffs, having the home-court advantage in style.
The defending champions beat Monaco on the road (88-76) and now have a 21-12 record, securing the third spot, while Monaco, at 20-13, can end up even in the Play-Ins.
Kendrick Nunn, with 37 points on 5/5 threes, was simply unstoppable, and Jerian Grant, with 14 points, was the only other scorer of Panathinaikos in double digits.
“We came here with one job, to get a win on the road”, Nunn explained after the game. “It was a tough one; we came out aggressive, and we kept it throughout the game”.
On the other hand, Daniel Theis, with 18 points and seven rebounds, was the best player of the losing side. Alpha Diallo scored 16 points, while Mike James had six points on 2/14 FG.
The Nunn-show
Panathinaikos had a great first period, leading 32-21 with Nunn scoring a three at the buzzer and completing a 12-3 run as the Greens lost just two shots in the quarter.
The guests extended their lead to 15 points (38-23) after the first bucket of the second period. However, Monaco trimmed the lead to eight points at halftime (49-41), with Okobo scoring at the buzzer.
Nunn, meanwhile, got an almost perfect first half with 18 points, three assists, and just one missed shot.
On the other side, that was the start as Monaco continued a 16-0 run to make it a one-point game (49-48) at the start of the third period, keeping the guests scoreless for eight minutes.
And then Nunn hit again, making two straight threes plus a shooting foul to create distance again with seven personal points (56-48). The run extended to 11-0 (60-48), with two more points by Nunn and a bucket by Omer Yurtseven.
With Nunn reaching the 30-point mark, Panathinaikos entered the last period leading by 12 (65-53), and Lorentzo Brown added two more for a 14-point lead (67-53). Monaco didn’t give up and, with a three by Okobo, made it a five-point game (74-69) with four minutes left but couldn’t get any closer.
Photo credit: Eurokinissi