Greek League, Playoffs, Quarterfinals Game 1: May 3, 2008
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The Greek League quarterfinals playoffs opened their gates with a big surprise as Aris TT Bank was upset at home by Maroussi 61-72 on Saturday. Panathinaikos and Olympiacos recorded easy wins, though, crushing Olympia Larissa 74-55 and AEK 92-62, respectively. Vassilis Spanoulis netted 13 points for Panathinaikos and Lynn Greer shined with 18 for the Reds. In the most balanced match-up, host Panionios won 83-70 against Panellinios. All the winners need another victory to advance to the semifinals, with the next games taking place on Monday.
At OAKA Sports Hall, the defending champs pasted Olympia Larissa 74-55. Panathinaikos dictated the tempo over Olympia Larissa from the very beginning allowing coach Zelimir Obradovic to share the playing time. Vassilis Spanoulis netted 13 points, big men Mike Batiste and Andrija Zizic had 11 apiece and Kostas Tsartsaris finished with 10 points and 8 rebounds for the Greens. Corey Belser led the guests with 14 points.
Olympiacos had an easy evening, too, smashing AEK 92-62 at Peace and Friendship Stadium. After a 22-22 first period tie, the Reds strengthened their defense and pressed the gas on offense to easily run away. Lynn Greer scored 18 points, Panagiotis Vassilopoulos added 15, Giannis Bouroussis had 13, Qyntel Woods contributed 11, while Sofoklis Schortsianitis had 9 points in as many minutes of play. William Avery posted 12, Alexis Kyritsis 11 and Nikos Barlos 10 for AEK in defeat.
Maroussi silenced the Alexandrion Melathron, escaping with a big 61-72 win over Aris. Branko Milisavljevic scored 19 out of his 27 points in the first half to allow the visitors build a 29-39 difference after two periods. Aris reacted and with a three-pointer from Dimitris Tsaldaris, regained the lead at 43-42. But, Maroussi kept its nerve to stay in control of the game tempo and sailed in front till the final buzzer. Tsaldaris and Washington scored 12 points each, while Jeremiah Massey had to settle for 10 points, 6 boards, and 4 turnovers for Aris.
Panionios beat 83-70 Panellinios in Hellinikon Complex as four players scored in double figures; Dusan Sakota and Aleksander Capin recorded 15 points apiece on 4 triples each, Lonny Baxter posted 12 points and Giannis Kalampokis bagged 11 points and 7 rebounds. Panellinios got 20 points from Anthony Grundy and 12 from Nikos Argyropoulos.
| Quarterfinal Playoffs, best of 3 games |
| Record | Team | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | | 1 | Panathinaikos (1) | 74 | May 5 | *May 8 | | 0 | Olympia Larissa (8) | 55 | - | - | | 1 | Panionios On Telecoms(4) | 83 | May 5 | *May 8 | | 0 | Panellinios (5) | 70 | - | - | | 1 | Olympiacos (2) | 92 | May 5 | *May 8 | | 0 | AEK (7) | 62 | - | - | | 0 | Aris TT Bank (3) | 61 | May 5 | *May 8 | | 1 | Maroussi (6) | 72 | - | - |
| Quarterfinal games | | Game 1 | Panathinaikos vs. Olympia Larissa | 74-55 | May 3 | | Game 1 | Olympiacos vs. AEK | 92-62 | May 3 | | Game 1 | Aris TT Bank vs. Maroussi | 61-72 | May 3 | | Game 1 | Panionios On Telecoms vs. Panellinios | 83-70 | May 3 | | Game 2 | Olympia Larissa vs. Panathinaikos | - | May 5 | | Game 2 | AEK vs. Olympiacos | - | May 5 | | Game 2 | Maroussi vs. Aris TT Bank | - | May 5 | | Game 2 | Panellinios vs. Panionios On Telecoms | - | May 5 | | Game 3 | Panathinaikos vs. Olympia Larissa | - | *May 8 | | Game 3 | Olympiacos vs. AEK | - | *May 8 | | Game 3 | Aris TT Bank vs. Maroussi | - | *May 8 | | Game 3 | Panionios On Telecoms vs. Panellinios | - | *May 8 |
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Stelios Kyriakoglou, Athens
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