Panathinaikos BC AKTOR was defeated by Valencia Basket on the road with 102-84, in a game for Round 37 of the EuroLeague regular season. Nigel Hayes-Davis was the top scorer for the Greens with 19 points.

The game was balanced in the first minutes, with the Spanish team leading 8-2 at 2’, but Panathinaikos BC AKTOR cutting it to 8-6 in the next minute. Valencia Basket extended the lead to 15-8 at 6’, and at 8’ the Greens closed in to 17-15, before the end of the quarter with the score at 27-23 in favor of the hosts. At 12’ the Spanish team went up 33-26 and 38-30 at 13’.

The difference reached +14 (48-34) for Valencia Basket, with the Greens reducing it to 48-39 at 17’. The end of the first half found the hosts ahead 56-47, while at 22’ they extended it to 64-53. At 26’ Panathinaikos BC AKTOR cut it to 66-61, but at 27’ Valencia Basket made it 71-62. The difference returned to double digits at 29’ (74-63) and the quarter ended with the score at 82-69.

At 32’ the hosts pulled further away to +16 (88-72), remaining ahead 90-76 at 35’. The lead that the Spanish team had built was never lost, as they prevailed in the end with the final score 102-84.

Quarters: 27-23, 56-47, 82-69, 102-84.

Valencia Basket (Martinez): Badio 14 (4), Taylor 10 (1), Puerto 10 (2), Reuvers 16 (2), Pradilla 2, Key 8, Montero 22 (2), Moore, Sako 2, Thompson 8 (2), Costello 10 (1), Nogues.

Panathinaikos BC AKTOR (Ataman): Shorts 7, Kalaitzakis, Osman 16 (2), Sloukas 10 (1), Hayes-Davis 19 (1), Grant 7 (1), Nunn 8 (1), Lessort 9, Faried 2, Grigonis, Hernangomez 6, Mitoglou.

Ataman: “We fought, but…”

The head coach of Panathinaikos BC AKTOR, Ergin Ataman, stated in the Press Conference following the away game against Valencia Basket:

“Valencia played incredible basketball. We couldn’t find a way to stop their offensive intensity. Maybe we were tired after the game against Barcelona. They deserved the win 100% — congratulations to them. We fought, but Valencia, even if they were playing against the… Lakers, with this kind of basketball they would still win. They have a great coach and they prepare extremely well. It’s very difficult to reach this kind of level within 48 hours. They were focused, and Montero had an outstanding game. Costello was hitting three-pointers, and they were grabbing offensive rebounds. So far, Valencia’s game has been the most difficult one for us. I hope we don’t face them in the Playoffs.

The weather in Valencia is fantastic this time of year. The arena is the best I have ever seen. I would like to invite the new EuroLeague CEO, Chus Bueno, to come and see the locker room that Valencia provided for us coaches. There is no respect for the coaches. You can come and see it for yourselves. It was a big surprise for me. I invite him to come and see it. The EuroLeague is a very important league, and its image matters to everyone. Others complained about this 2–3 months ago, but nothing has changed. EuroLeague coaches do not deserve to wait in this place, in this kind of storage room.”