Panathinaikos Athens secured their place in the play-offs with an 88-76 win in Monaco. By contrast, Real Madrid’s 105-104 defeat to Paris has increased the pressure on FC Bayern – although the French team still has a chance of making the play-offs.
As just the third team to qualify for the playoffs, Panathinaikos secured their spot in the playoffs with a 88-76 win in Monaco: Kendrick Nunn excelled with 37 points (9/12 twos, 5/5 threes). Top scorer for Monaco, where Mike James had a poor day with just six points (2/14 from the field), was international Daniel Theis, who contributed 18 points and seven rebounds.
The first quarter was already clearly won by the guests, who led 32:21 after ten minutes. However, Monaco managed to get back to within eight points by half-time – and even looked like cutting the deficit further after the break. A 7:0 run suddenly made it just 48:49, but Panathinaikos struck back with a run of its own, allowing just four points in the rest of the period to make it a double-digit deficit again going into the final quarter: 53:65 from the perspective of the visitors from Monaco. Panathinaikos never relinquished their twelve-point lead, eventually sealing their place in the playoffs with a 88-76 win.
Important victory in the playoff race: Real edge out Paris
In the direct playoff duel between Madrid and Paris, Real kept the upper hand in the end with 105:104 in an offensive duel: Mario Hezonja (26 points) and Dzanan Musa (20 points) were the best players for Madrid, while T.J. Shorts (24 points) and Nadir Hifi (23 points) were the most convincing for the French, as they so often are. Real Madrid’s victory means they are level with Bayern Munich and have overtaken them thanks to the head-to-head. Paris still have a chance of reaching the play-offs on the final matchday.
Both teams put on an attacking display before half-time: after the first quarter, Paris led by five points (28:23), but at half-time the score was 53:53. Both teams scored well (Real: 42.9 percent) to very well (Paris: 60 percent) from outside in the first two quarters, with four players already scoring double digits before half-time.
The visitors then took the third quarter, leading 80:74 going into the final period. However, the Whites then produced a 10-0 run to turn the game around again. They then held on to win by 105:104 in a tight game.
