CSKA Moscow (8-5) cruised past Panathinaikos OPAP Athens (3-10) 97-77 (31-22, 22-16, 22-16, 22-23) to get their third Turkish Airlines EuroLeague win in a row.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
21
|
| Will Clyburn | |
| Points | 16 |
| Accuracy | 6-10 |
| Rebounds | 3 |
| Assists | 1 |
CSKA created a substantial lead in the second half of the first period when Alexey Shved and Semen Antonov converted 5 three-pointers in 5 tries (20-11).
Even though Nemanja Nedovic was pouring points for Panathinaikos (8 PTS), CSKA maintained its advantage in the attacking-oriented quarter (31-22).
Alexey Shved hit his fourth trey (4/4), Joel Bolomboy added a two-pointer, and CSKA's lead reached double-digits (36-24) at the start of the second period.
Bolomboy and Shved played successful Pick & Rolls while Will Clyburn was demolishing PAO's defense with his individual abilities. The Russian powerhouse's advantage climbed to 17 points (47-30). Both clubs went into the break as CSKA were in front by 15 (53-38).
Nikita Kurbanov and Semen Antonov organized a 9-0 spurt (59-38) at the start of the second half to put their team ahead by 24 points (62-38). It was a game-deciding push as CSKA never let Panathinaikos think about the comeback.
Alexey Shved led the route for CSKA, accumulating 17 points (1/4 2PT, 5/8 3PT), 2 rebounds, 13 assists, 3 turnovers, and 21 PIR. He tied his assist record.
"We played better than before. We moved the ball much better and started feeling each other. I think we played well today, all four quarters. This is the reason why we won," Shved told after the game.
"In general, we were in control of the game either when Panathinaikos chose to play man-to-man or zone. We had people that were creating wisely but we were playing good defense as well," commented Dimitris Itoudis post-game.
Okaro White was a top scorer for the Greens, posting 19 points (3/6 2PT, 3/7 3PT, 4/4 FT), 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 4 drawn fouls, and 18 PIR.
"First of all, congrats to CSKA. They played a great game, mostly offensively. The main problem for us was our defensive attitude. We had not enough energy for this level of the game. No contact, no energy, no activeness, so we [gave them] a lot of open shots. They had a very good three-point [shooting] and that was the main problem," Dimitris Priftis said.
Ioannis Papapetrou missed the game for PAO, while Tornike Shengelia, Johannes Voigtmann, and Daniel Hackett sat out the match for CSKA. Questionable Georgios Papagiannis participated in the contest.
CSKA: Alexey Shved 17 (13 AST), Semen Antonov 16, Will Clyburn 16, Iffe Lundberg 11 (4 STL).
Panathinaikos: Okaro White 19 (4 REB), Jeremy Evans 15 (4 REB), Nemanja Nedovic 14 (5 REB), Georgios Papagiannis 14 (9 REB), Howard Sant-Roos 10 (4 AST).
Highlights
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