Panathinaikos too strong for Zenit
EUROLEAGUE REGULAR SEASON - ROUND 24
Panathinaikos gained an important victory on Friday evening, defeating Zenit Saint Petersburg 96-81 at the OAKA Indoor Hall in the EuroLeague.
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Previously, Panathinaikos had conceded two consecutive defeats on the road against Valencia and Red Star Belgrade respectively, but they responded with a powerful showing at the OAKA. Zenit, practically out of playoff contention, struggled to deal with Panathinaikos’ attacking firepower, as the Athenians scored a minimum of 25 points in three of the four periods.
Panathinaikos occupy sixth position of the regular season with 14 victories and 10 defeats. Zenit, however, languish in 17th spot with a poor 7-17 record.
In wonderful form, Deshaun Thomas was the leading light for Panathinaikos, scoring 27 points. Tyrese Rice (15) and Konstantinos Mitoglou (11) also reached double figures in terms of points.
Gustavo Ayon netted 21 points for the visitors from Saint Petersburg.
In their next EuroLeague game, Panathinaikos will host Barcelona, while Zenit welcome ALBA Berlin to Russia.
THE MATCH
Panathinaikos came flying out of the blocks.
Eager to get back on track after losing in Belgrade on Wednesday, Panathinaikos blew Zenit away in the first quarter, outscoring the Russians 30-11.
Nevertheless, Zenit did conjure up a response in the second, clinching it 29-16 to reduce the deficit to a mere six points. Thomas rounded off the half with this stunning buzzer-beater:
The Prasini were under pressure to maintain their excellent home record under the leadership of Rick Pitino.
To the fans’ relief, Panathinaikos did avoid an upset, scoring 25 points in each of the last two periods to see out the match.
