By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Olympiacos remains first in the standings, having the same winning record with Panathinaikos but being above the Greens thanks to a tie-breaking point advantage. Meanwhile, PAOK and AEK returned to victories, while Lavrio took a big step towards avoiding relegation.
In the derby that took place in “Nick Galis” hall, Thessaloniki, Olympiacos (23-1) bent the strong will and resistance of Aris (18-6) through its calm and experience that made a decisive difference in the last minutes. After a first quarter of sheer… ugliness (10-12 score), the guests pumped up the rhythm of their game to gain a good lead before the halftime break which ended 28 – 34. But Okaro White took his team on his shoulders, scoring abundantly during the third period. His baskets sounded the comeback charge for Aris that managed to be ahead of the score, 62 – 58, with 3 minutes to go.
It was in this moment that Olympiacos intensified its defense and found transition points that solved its offensive problem. Kostas Papanikolaou then banged a crucial three-pointer for the 66 – 68 with 75 seconds to go. His teammates made the best out of this advantage, being accurate from the free throw line in the last minutes, thus thwarting Aris’ final attempts to recover the lead.
Panathinaikos (23-1) faced enough troubles against last in the standings Kavala (5-19) on the road, to be behind the score 52 – 45, in the mid of the third period. That was a wake up call for Sasa Djordjevic and his players. The Greens became faster on both ends of court, making a 12-0 run that set the motions for their final win.
After losing two consecutive games, AEK (17-7) snapped on Kolossos Rhodes (11-13), dominating in every way imaginable. There is still a possibility for the Athenian team to finish the regular season as third, albeit few, since Aris must lose both of its own games.
Lavrio (9-15) significantly increased its chances of staying in the first division, by beating Apollon (9-15) while PAOK (11-13) recovered its strength, and psychology, against Trikala (7-17) on the road
Basket League 2015/2016 – Day 24th
Lavrio (Brandon Young 14 p. 4 a. ) – Apollon Patras: 80 – 64
AEK (Milan Milosevic 15 p. 6 r.) – Kolossos Rhodes: 92 – 57
Koroivos – Arkadikos (Cameron Jones 21 p. 7 r.): 60 – 61
Trikala – PAOK (William Hatcher 22 p.): 79 – 88
Kifissia (Muhammad El-Amin 25 p.) – Rethymno: 100 – 88
Kavala – Panathinaikos (James Feldeine 22 p.): 76 – 82
Aris – Olympiacos (Vassilis Spanoulis 17 p. 11 a.) : 72 – 76