Defeat in Athens

Real Madrid lost in Athens against Panathinaikos. Our team, which held the lead for the first three quarters, fell to the local team's strong performance in the final period. The players coached by Scariolo fought until the end, but the game was decided in favor of Panathinaikos with a basket by Grant with two seconds left. Len, with 20 points and a performance index rating of 29, was our team's standout player.

Real Madrid took the lead early on thanks to three-pointers. Two from Hezonja, one from Okeke, and another from Abalde made it 8-12 within five minutes of play. Panathinaikos struggled to overcome our defense. Additionally, our offensive accuracy from beyond the arc continued with a second three-pointer from Abalde and the first from Campazzo. Our team, with a great start, finished the first quarter ten points ahead (16-26).

Offensive and defensive accuracy
Real Madrid continued their strong performance at the start of the second quarter. With 6:42 left before halftime, the home team had only managed to score a three-pointer by Sloukas, while Scariolo's players extended their lead with three successful free throws by Procida and baskets from Feliz and Lyles (19-33). The home team responded with eight consecutive points, cutting the margin in half (27-33), but Real Madrid managed to widen the gap again, heading into halftime with a 36-44 scoreline after a three-point play by Len, several excellent defensive plays, and a technical foul on Sloukas.

Ten consecutive points from Panathinaikos after the break gave the home team the lead for the first time in the game (46-44) with 6:50 remaining in the third quarter. A three-pointer by Okeke and two successful free throws by Len regained the lead for Scariolo's team (46-49) with 5:32 left to play. The game was tied for the first time with 2:40 remaining (55-55), but an exchange of baskets, a free throw by Feliz and a three-pointer by Llull countered by another from Sloukas left the score at 60-61.

Thrilling finale
Everything was to be decided in a final quarter that began with three-pointers from Juancho and Grant. Scariolo's team was five points down (66-61), but Llull stepped up to tighten the score once again (66-65). The home team increased their intensity and achieved their largest lead of the game (+6), but six consecutive points from Len brought the score to 73-73 with 2:15 remaining and both teams in the bonus.

Everything came down to a nail-biting final minute, where Len put us ahead with a three-point play, but a basket by Sloukas and a three-pointer by Juancho changed the situation. With eight seconds left, a three-point play by Hezonja gave us the lead (80-81), but a basket by Grant with two seconds remaining led to Real Madrid's defeat.

Panathinaikos-Real Madrid statistics

 

 

 

Disclaimer: Translation generated by artificial intelligence. It may contain inaccuracies.