No festive cheer against Real Madrid for Panathinaikos 
 

EUROLEAGUE REGULAR SEASON - ROUND 16

Stuttering Panathinaikos suffered their second consecutive defeat in the EuroLeague regular season, as Real Madrid earned a 87-75 victory at the OAKA Indoor Hall.

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Losing three out of the four quarters, Panathinaikos were well beaten by the Spaniards in Athens, who have now claimed 11 successive wins in the EuroLeague. In charge throughout, Real Madrid were better than their Greek opponents in all of the key components of the game, picking up more rebounds (45-36), dishing out more assists (24-12) and going 35% from the three-point line.

Real’s last EuroLeague defeat was suffered in late October.

Panathinaikos, however, have now conceded two defeats in a row after losing to Maccabi Tel Aviv on the road last week. Holding a 9-7 record, Panathinaikos are currently ranked sixth in the standings, while Real are joint top with Anadolu Efes with 13 victories in 16 matches.

Nick Calathes (19 points, seven assists) was the leading Panathinaikos player again, however, he only managed to hit one of eight three-pointers. Jimmer Fredette scored 18 points.

Anthony Randolph, in great form for Real Madrid, drained five attempts from behind the arc as he tallied 22 points:

Rick Pitino’s troops will aim to get back to winning ways next week against reigning champions CSKA Moscow in Kaliningrad. Real Madrid will take on ASVEL in France.

THE MATCH

Real, immediately taking charge of proceedings, kept Panathinaikos at bay in the first quarter by winning it 22-18.

The Spanish giants continued playing on the front foot in the second quarter, outscoring Panathinaikos by eight to take a commanding 10-point advantage. Nevertheless, Calathes delivered a highlight-reel moment for the hosts, supplying a superb assist to Konstantinos Mitoglou:

Panathinaikos subsequently showed fight in the third quarter to cut the deficit down to eight. 

Real weren’t to be denied, though, as they never allowed Panathinaikos to build up momentum for a prolonged amount of time in the fourth stanza.

HIGHLIGHTS

by Shaun Nicolaides

Image Source: sportfm.gr

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