Even without Baldwin, Maccabi won against PAO
After being seen as big favourites finishing in second place in the regular season, Panathinaikos Athens is showing their weaknesses in the playoff. Not against a powerhouse like Real, Barca, or Olympiacos but against a team that needed the play-in tournament to qualify for the Euroleague playoffs.
Maccabi Tel Aviv is a squad that has to play their home games in Serbia, without the support of their fans but with a big heart and determination. They were seen as the underdog in this series against PAO and the whole season almost nobody took them very seriously. Now after Wade Baldwin’s injury, they were seen even more as the underdog. Of course, Juancho Hernangomez is missing also for the Greens, but he made a mediocre season with many games scoreless or with few points.
In the 3rd game of the series, Maccabi dominated from the beginning till the last quarter. Panathinaikos looked like a bunch of guys playing in the park without a collective game and chemistry. Then, miraculosuly PAO came back and had the chance to win the game.
The offensive rebounds gave eventually a narrow win to Maccabi Tel Aviv, in a game where the Greeks missed the key moments, especially in defense. If they will continue on this rhythm the next game will be the last of the season for them. Only a cold shower can wake them up to win the 4th encounter, hoping to take the series back to OAKA for the 5th game.
The article was written by Gratian Cormos, a Romanian journalist, book writer, life coach and mentor currently living in Barcelona, Spain.
If you are interested in collaborating with his website brainbasketball.net, to publish articles, interviews or other features related to basketball or for a marketing proposal, feel free to contact Gratian Cormos by Whatsapp or Telegram at this Spanish number: +34 612414486.
Photo credit: EuroLeague
