FIBA Basketball
GRE - Pana, Efes advance
ATHENS (Euroleague) - Panathinaikos and Efes Pilsen booked their spots in the quarter-finals of the Euroleague in a fiercely-contested Group G on Wednesday.All four teams tied with 3-3 records but Pana join compatriots Olimpiacos in the last eight by beating Benetton Treviso 80-71 in front of 18,000 fans to top the pool with the best points difference
ATHENS (Euroleague) - Panathinaikos and Efes Pilsen booked their spots in the quarter-finals of the Euroleague in a fiercely-contested Group G on Wednesday.
All four teams tied with 3-3 records but Pana join compatriots Olimpiacos in the last eight by beating Benetton Treviso 80-71 in front of 18,000 fans to top the pool with the best points difference.
Mike Batiste poured in 18 points as Pana completed a brilliant comeback after losing their first three fixtures. Panathinaikos are loaded with Greek players who celebrated EuroBasket gold last summer in Belgrade and they are led by coach Zelko Obradovic, who has proved once again he is one of the best in the business.
"Even though our record was anything but a positive one after the completion of the first round (of Top 16), the board and the fans never stopped believing in our qualification chance," said Obradovic. "That gave us a lot of strength and helped us remain composed. As the saying goes, `As long as there is life, there is hope."
For Benetton, the loss caps a frustrating campaign in the Euroleague for they have been ravaged by injuries. Nikos Zisis, FIBA Europe's Young Men's Player of the Year after helping Greece capture the gold in Belgrade, was limited to just seven games.
Ironically, he was unavailable to face many of his fellow national team stars who play for Panathinaikos.
For Efes, Henry Domercant was the hero with 23 points including seven from seven free throws as they beat hosts Cibona in Zagreb 84-77 in front of a sell-out crowd.
He had stalwart support from Antonio Granger (15) while Kerem Gonlum, who is likely to play at the FIBA World Championship for Turkey, hauled down 11 rebounds.
Domercant, however, said it was Efes' ability to disrupt Cibona's offensive rhythm which made the biggest difference.
"Great defense was the key," he said, before admitting, "and our shooting night - nine three-pointers, including four in the last quarter."
Scoonie Penn poured in 23 points in a losing cause for the Croatian outfit while Bennett Davison managed a double double of 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Hopes had been sky high among Cibona fans after their club scraped their way into the Top 16 and then won three games on the trot, but it was not to be.
In Group F, Tau Ceramica outlasted CSKA Moscow 70-63 in a match between two teams that had already secured their last eight berths.
Sergi Vidal (16) and Turkish star Serkan Erdogan (11) were the main men for the team from Vitoria while Matjaz Smodis of Slovenia managed 13 for the Russian team.
Lietuvos Rytas ended their season with a smile, beating GHP Bamberg 72-56 largely thanks to a 21-point haul from Australian national team star Matt Nielsen.
Tau, along with Real Madrid and Barcelona, are one of three teams from Spain in the last eight while European champions Greece are represented by Pana and Olimpiacos.
Two-time defending champions Maccabi Tel Aviv, Russia's CSKA and Turkey's Efes make up the octet.
No Italian clubs have made it through to the last eight.
By PA Sport, Exclusively for FIBA
All four teams tied with 3-3 records but Pana join compatriots Olimpiacos in the last eight by beating Benetton Treviso 80-71 in front of 18,000 fans to top the pool with the best points difference.
Mike Batiste poured in 18 points as Pana completed a brilliant comeback after losing their first three fixtures. Panathinaikos are loaded with Greek players who celebrated EuroBasket gold last summer in Belgrade and they are led by coach Zelko Obradovic, who has proved once again he is one of the best in the business.
"Even though our record was anything but a positive one after the completion of the first round (of Top 16), the board and the fans never stopped believing in our qualification chance," said Obradovic. "That gave us a lot of strength and helped us remain composed. As the saying goes, `As long as there is life, there is hope."
For Benetton, the loss caps a frustrating campaign in the Euroleague for they have been ravaged by injuries. Nikos Zisis, FIBA Europe's Young Men's Player of the Year after helping Greece capture the gold in Belgrade, was limited to just seven games.
Ironically, he was unavailable to face many of his fellow national team stars who play for Panathinaikos.
For Efes, Henry Domercant was the hero with 23 points including seven from seven free throws as they beat hosts Cibona in Zagreb 84-77 in front of a sell-out crowd.
He had stalwart support from Antonio Granger (15) while Kerem Gonlum, who is likely to play at the FIBA World Championship for Turkey, hauled down 11 rebounds.
Domercant, however, said it was Efes' ability to disrupt Cibona's offensive rhythm which made the biggest difference.
"Great defense was the key," he said, before admitting, "and our shooting night - nine three-pointers, including four in the last quarter."
Scoonie Penn poured in 23 points in a losing cause for the Croatian outfit while Bennett Davison managed a double double of 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Hopes had been sky high among Cibona fans after their club scraped their way into the Top 16 and then won three games on the trot, but it was not to be.
In Group F, Tau Ceramica outlasted CSKA Moscow 70-63 in a match between two teams that had already secured their last eight berths.
Sergi Vidal (16) and Turkish star Serkan Erdogan (11) were the main men for the team from Vitoria while Matjaz Smodis of Slovenia managed 13 for the Russian team.
Lietuvos Rytas ended their season with a smile, beating GHP Bamberg 72-56 largely thanks to a 21-point haul from Australian national team star Matt Nielsen.
Tau, along with Real Madrid and Barcelona, are one of three teams from Spain in the last eight while European champions Greece are represented by Pana and Olimpiacos.
Two-time defending champions Maccabi Tel Aviv, Russia's CSKA and Turkey's Efes make up the octet.
No Italian clubs have made it through to the last eight.
By PA Sport, Exclusively for FIBA