Panionios On Telecoms registered its first win in ULEB Cup Group G by downing Asco Slask Wroclaw 72-61 at home on Tuesday. Both teams join a four-way tie for the second place in Group G, each with a 1-1 record. Giannis Giannoulis paced the winners with 16 points on 6-of-9 two-pointers. Ioannis Kalampokis added 14 points while Brad Newley barely missed a double-double with 9 points and 11 rebounds for Panionios. Torrell Martin had 15 points for Slask, Oliver Stevic added 12 while Dawan Robinson got 10 for the guests. Panionios got an early 10-4 lead but Martin and Jared Homan allowed Slask got get back in the game, 23-23, midway through the second quarter. An 11-0 run allowed Panionios to regain the lead, 36-27, at halftime. Dusan Sakota and Ivan Zoroski helped Panionios to make it a 16-point game, 43-27. Slask never got within striking distance, as Panionios kept a safe cushion all the way until the final buzzer.
Giannoulis dominated in the paint early in the game while Zoroski led a 6-0 run to make the hosts take a 12-4 lead. Slask called timeout and Rashid Atkins came off the bench to hit a triple that ended a four-minute draught. Panionios kept its momentum going behind drives by Kalampokis and Mateen Cleaves for a double-score gap, 18-9. Atkins stroke from downtown to make it 18-12 after 10 minutes of play. Sakota opened the second quarter with a triple and Kalampokis followed with a reverse layup to hold a 23-16 lead. Martin shined with 5 points in a 0-7 run that Homan capped with a wild dunk for a 23-23 tie. Panionios did not panic, however, as Giannoulis, Kalampokis and Sakota combined for all points in a 11-0 run orchestrated by Vassilis Xanthopoulos, who kept everyone involved. Slask trimmed its deficit to 36-27 at halftime. Sakota hit one from downtown and Zoroski scored off a steal to break the game open, 43-27, after the break. Martin tried to change things with 7 quick points while Stevic scored twice in a 3-14 run to get the guests back in the game, 46-41. Giannoulis stepped up with a driving layup and fed Levon Kendall for a dunk. Even when Martin was unstoppable, Cleaves fed Kendall for an easy layup that allowed Panionios to keep a 53-46 edge after 30 minutes. Panionios slowed down the game tempo and Slask struggled to score down the stretch. A third-chance layup by Kalampokis and a big triple by Cleaves broke the game open, 60-48, midway through the fourth quarter. Panionios kept committing unsportsmanlike fouls while Robinson got Slask within 62-55, but it happened to be too little, too late for Slask.
Panionios head coach Nenad Markovic
"I am satisfied that we won the match, however we had many ups and downs. The 12 turnovers we made in the second half are unacceptable. We should work very hard and try to be focused throughout all 40 minutes. We should not allow our opponents to rally."
Panionios shooting guard Ioannis Kalampokis
"We worked hard the past few days, as we tried to fix some details in our game. All this work helped us to improve our performance and grab two important victories - one against AEK for the Greek League and the other versus Slask - something that will boost not only our confidence, but also our chances for qualification."
Asco Slask head coach Andrej Urlep
"We didn't have a team mentality in the first half. We had too much ego and everyone wanted to be the focal point on offense. Our primary goal was to shoot the ball rather than to find the open teammate. In the second half, we picked up our defensive intensity, but when our starters got tired, we didn't find any solutions offensively."
Asco Slask center Oliver Stevic
"In the first half we were terrible and very very selfish. Moreover, our defensive effort was not there. Then we played a lot better, however, that wasn't enough to give us the win."
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Danos Tsakalos, Athens