Panathinaikos AKTOR claimed the victory over Olympiacos (80–68) in Game 1 of the Stoiximan GBL Finals, taking the first step toward retaining the domestic crown in Greece. Jerian Grant was the Greens’ top scorer with 17 points.

Panathinaikos AKTOR took the lead in the opening minutes of the game (6–4 at 3′), before falling behind by one shot heading into the first TV timeout (11–13 at 6′). However, the Greens quickly regained control and, with consecutive made perimeter shots, ended the first quarter in front (20–19).

In the early minutes of the second period, the visitors took the lead again (22–25 at 14′), but Ergin Ataman’s players responded and, with excellent defense, completely turned the game around. That’s how a -2 turned into a +9 (37–28 at 17′) in just three minutes. The first half ended with Panathinaikos AKTOR leading by 8 (42–34).

The Greens maintained their lead in the third quarter, extending it to +9 (47–37 at 23′) and later to +12 (56–44 at 26′). Despite Olympiacos increasing their defensive pressure and ball pressure, Panathinaikos AKTOR’s players closed the quarter with an 8-point lead (58–50) and brought the margin back to double digits midway through the final quarter (66–56 at 35′).

The game concluded with the Greek Champions securing the win (80–68), taking the first step toward defending their Stoiximan GBL title.

Quarters: 20–19, 42–34, 58–50, 80–68.
PANATHINAIKOS (Ataman): Osman 11 (1), Grant 17 (4), Nunn 14 (4), Gabriel, Hernangómez 4, Kalaitzakis 4, Sloukas 7 (1), Samodurov 2, Papapetrou 3, Mitoglou 6, Yurtseven 12.
OLYMPIACOS (Bartzokas): Walkup, Fall 15, Vezenkov 20 (2), Peters 11 (2), Fournier 12 (2), Vildoza 2, Lee 5, Papanikolaou 3 (1), Dorsey, Milutinov.

Ataman: “Tonight I saw that everyone was mentally ready”

Ergin Ataman spoke to journalists after Panathinaikos AKTOR’s win over Olympiacos in Game 1 of the Stoiximan GBL Finals.

Here is what the Panathinaikos AKTOR coach said in detail:

“I think we played a good game defensively, we played tough, we didn’t let Fournier find easy points. We had a problem with offensive rebounds in the first half and with points under the basket from Fall, but even though we didn’t have a great offensive game, and Sloukas, Nunn, and Hernangómez didn’t contribute as usual, we got the win through toughness and good defense.”

Asked about the failure in the Final Four and the speech by Dimitris Giannakopoulos at OAKA and whether it played a role in the win:
“I think for both teams it’s a big achievement to reach the Final Four. After 39 games, getting there is a success. You saw how many teams didn’t make it — teams like Real, Barcelona, and Anadolu Efes. Then it becomes just a game of basketball. You can lose, you can win.

Last year everything went well for us and we made it. This year we played badly and we lost. The same applies to Olympiacos. I read that all of you are criticizing Olympiacos, even though they finished first in the regular season and dominated it. OK, they had one bad game, and then suddenly the other games don’t matter… That’s basketball. Now we are focused on the second game. We will try to do our best. We know we’re playing against a great team with a lot of experience. We’re focused on that and not on what anyone says — whether inside the club or outside of it. Those comments are for you journalists. That’s your business.”

On Alexandros Samontourov:
“Samontourov has been one of our best players in the second part of the season — in the quarterfinals, in the semifinals, and in practices. Right now, he’s one of the best power forwards on the team. Tonight, he wasn’t lucky. It doesn’t matter that he’s young. We have great faith in him. We’ll continue using him this season. Next year, he’ll be one of our most important players on the team.”

On the team’s mental preparation:
“Of course, it’s my job to mentally prepare the team. Tonight I saw that everyone was mentally ready. I can’t say that I was the one who prepared them — the fans played a very important role with this atmosphere.”

“In my philosophy, I never think about the next game. I focused on tonight’s match, and then we’ll prepare for the next one, on Sunday. I use my players based on what I sense from the team at any given time.”