Panathinaikos ended a 13-year drought without a trophy in the Euroleague. At the Uber Arena in Berlin, Ergin Ataman's men dethroned last year's trophy winners Real Madrid 95-80 in a final that was watched by legend Scottie Pippen and Milwaukee captain Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The gold is the first for the "Clovers" since 2011, and Ergin Ataman kept his promise and brought Panathinaikos a seventh title. For the Turkish specialist, this is the third award after the two with Anadolu Efes.
Kostas Sloukas set the tone for the new EuroLeague trophy winner with 24 points. Kendrick Nunn added 21. Mathias Lessor had 17 points and 6 rebounds. Jerian Grant finished with 11, 6 rebounds and 5 assists.
Janan Moussa was the best for Real Madrid with 15 points and 5 rebounds. Facundo Campazzo registered 12. Sergio Rodriguez had 11 points.
The Spaniards reached a double-digit lead at the end of the first half, leading by 36:25, led by Facundo Campazzo and Janan Moussa. In the second period, PAO picked up and cut to 49:54 with the help of Kostas Slukas, Kendrick Nunn and Mathias Lessor. After the break, the Shamrocks limited their opponent to 7 points, answering with 15 to reach a turnaround for 64:61. In the last 10 minutes, the Spanish giant reduced its deficit to 1 point, but Jerian Grant and Dinos Mitoglu made no mistake for 73:65. Madrid responded through Giannan Moussa and Sergio Lull for 71:73, but the Greek giant did not bend and through Kostas Sloukas, Kendrick Nunn and Dinos Mitoglu held the lead for 86:76, and did not lose the initiative until the end.
In the minor final, Olympiakos defeated Fenerbahçe 87:84. /BGNES
