May 23, 2013
Regular Season Game 9 - January 08, 2009 CET: 21:00 Local time: 21:00 - PALAESTRA
Montepaschi Siena 82 - 77 Panathinaikos

Records

Ave.   Ave.
0-0 Final Four 0-0
0-0 Playoffs 0-0
0-0 Top 16 0-0
6-2 Regular Season 6-2
6-2 Overall 6-2

Referees

Crew Chief
MITJANA, JUAN CARLOS, Spain
Referee
GARCIA ORTIZ, JOSE RAMON, Spain
Umpire
SUTULOVIC, ZORAN, Montenegro

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
81.3 Points 76.4
31.9 Rebounds 32.0
9.9 O. Rebounds 9.6
22.0 D. Rebounds 22.4
13.8 Assists 13.9
11.5 Steals 9.0
2.4 Blocks 3.0
11.4 Turnovers 14.0
52.5 % 2PT 57.4 %
38.1 % 3PT 33.1 %
77.7 % FT 70.4 %
88.8 Index 84.4
Team Stats - Montepaschi Siena
Team Stats - Panathinaikos

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
14.3 / Kaukenas Points 12.8 / Batiste
7.6 / Lavrinovic, K. Rebounds 5.8 / Batiste
2.1 / Eze OR 2.0 / Batiste
5.8 / Lavrinovic, K. DR 3.8 / Batiste
3.9 / MCINTYRE, TERRELL Assists 3.0 / Diamantidis
2.0 / MCINTYRE, TERRELL Steals 1.4 / Diamantidis
1.1 / Eze Blocks 0.9 / PEKOVIC, NIKOLA
1.9 / MCINTYRE, TERRELL Turnovers 2.4 / Diamantidis
71.4 % / STONEROOK, SHAUN 2PT 100.0 % / SAKOTA, DUSAN
50.0 % / Domercant 3PT 51.7 % / Diamantidis
100.0 % / FINLEY, MORRIS FT 100.0 % / KECMAN, DUSAN
18.9 / Lavrinovic, K. Index 17.4 / Diamantidis
Team Roster - Montepaschi Siena
Team Roster - Panathinaikos

THE TAKE

Second place in Group B will be on the line on Thursday when Montepaschi Siena hosts Panathinaikos. The two teams enter the game tied for second with 6-2 records and with theoretic chances to win the group, though they would each need to win both remaining games and for group leader Regal FC Barcelona to lose its remaining games for that to happen. The Greens topped Montepaschi in a thriller in Athens in November as Sarunas Jasikevicius and Dimitris Diamantidis overturned a late deficit for an 81-76 win. A double win for Panathinaikos would guarantee head coach Zeljko Obradovic’s men at least second place in the group, while a win by more than 5 points would do the same for the Italian champs. Head coach Simone Pianigiani’s troops are coming off a loss to Barca from before the break, but have a bit of a different look now. The club has added former Panathinaikos playmaker Arriel McDonald to fortify the backcourt and he may need to step right in with Morris Finley sidelined and Rimas Kaukenas questionable. Meanwhile the Greek champs are finally fully healthy after a series of injury problems in December. These two teams feature incredibly versatile lineups with big men that can score outside, guards that go inside and two of the best coaching minds in basketball that know how to use them. One key matchup will take place at point guard, where the hosts feature All-Euroleague first team selection Terrell McIntyre and Panathinaikos boasts perennial Best Defender Award winner Diamantidis. Those two may not necessarily guard one another though, as Montepaschi brings Henry Domercant and Romain Sato as well as McDonald, while the Greens have Jasikevicius, Vassilis Spanoulis and Drew Nicholas, among others. The teams are equally deep in the paint with Shaun Stonerook, Ben Eze and Ksistof Lavrinovic for the hosts and Mike Batiste, Antonis Fotsis, Nikola Pekovic and Kostas Tsartsaris for the visitors. Montepaschi is naturally the favorite at home, where it has won 10 straight Euroleague games, however for a high-scoring team (81.3 ppg.), it may be difficult to face Panathinaikos’s defense without Kaukenas. McDonald’s contributions and if needed the shooting of reserve swingman Marco Carraretto could prove to be difference makers, but either way this game has the makings of a fierce battle that could go down to the last shot.

GAME NOTES

Montepaschi Siena
  • Montepaschi Siena has won 10 straight and 14 of its last 15 Euroleague home games dating back to the start of last season.
  • Guard Henry Domercant matched his Euroleague career high with 29 points against Panathinaikos in an April 2005 Quarterfinal Playoff game. Domercant, then with Efes Pilsen, scored 29 points and grabbed 7 rebounds in a 102-96 overtime loss at OAKA. Current Panathinaikos swingman Dusan Kecman was a teammate of Domercant’s on that team.
  • Domercant’s streak of 12 consecutive Euroleague appearances with at least 1 three-pointer made came to an end in his last game before the winter break.
  • Forward Shaun Stonerook’s streak of 23 consecutive Euroleague appearances with at least 1 steal came to an end in his last game before the winter break.
  • Big man Ksistof Lavrinovic and guard Rimas Kaukenas were teammates with Panathinaikos guard Sarunas Jasikevicius on the Lithuanian Olympic team last summer. Lavrinovic and Jasikevicius were also teammates on the Lithuanian side that won the 2003 European championships in Sweden.
  • Small forward Romain Sato is coming off one of the most incredible performances of the season anywhere with a 56 index ranking in the Italian League contest against Virtus Bologna on Sunday. Sato recorded 37 points on 7-of-8 two-point and 3-of-4 three-point shooting. He also drew 10 fouls and shot 14 for 17 from the line, grabbed 8 rebounds and dished 5 assists.
  • New signing Arriel McDonald could take part in his first Euroleague game in nearly five years. Ironically, his last Euroleague appearance was against his new team, Montepaschi, with this week’s opponent, Panathinaikos, in the last game of the Top 16 in April 2004.
  • McDonald spent two seasons playing for Panathinaikos, winning two Greek championships and one Greek Cup. Aside from head coach Zeljko Obradovic, McDonald will be reunited with former teammates Fragiskos Alvertis, Mike Batiste, Nikos Hatzivrettas, Dusan Sakota and Kostas Tsartsaris.
Panathinaikos
  • Guard Dimitris Diamantidis has made at least 1 three-pointer in 15 straight Euroleague appearances dating back to last season. Diamantidis enters this week’s game shooting 15 for 29 (51.7%) from downtown this season – the best of his career.
  • This week will mark the 100th appearance of Diamantidis’s Euroleague career. He has played all of those games in a Panathinaikos uniform. Diamantidis will become the sixth player on the club roster with at least 100 Euroleague appearances joining Kostas Tsartsaris (154), Nikos Hatzivrettas (133), Sarunas Jasikevicius (121), Mike Batiste (119) and Fragiskos Alvertis (115).
  • Power forward Antonis Fotsis and Montepaschi guard Henry Domercant were teammates at Dynamo Moscow last season, helping the club reach the ULEB Cup semifinals.
  • Forward Stratos Perperoglou scored 16 points and grabbed 8 rebounds – both Euroleague career-highs – in the last game before the winter break against SLUC Nancy.
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Euroleague.net

Quotes Head Coaches

PIANIGIANI, SIMONE
Montepaschi Siena
"There are the conditions for a great game of basketball. For sure, we don't have all our players - Finley and Kaukenas are injured - but it will be a fantastic game against a team that in Europe is a guarantee of excellence. I am sure everyone will give 110 percent. We want to play a good game. The race for second place, however, does not provide absolute guarantees that we will have a real advantage in the Top 16. We will play with a fantastic atmosphere from our fans and with the respect that we perceive from the rest of Europe watching, which is important. Two years ago, we played ULEB Cup and we dreamed of playing these games. We did it last year, to the end, to the Final Four."
OBRADOVIC, ZELJKO
Panathinaikos
"Siena is a very good team and they played really well against Virtus Bologna. I believe that they are more dangerous now, after the way the lost to Barcelona. We all know that they are a very good team, which executes the pick-and-roll plays perfectly. Lavrinovic is a key player for their game since he can shoot the ball from long distance and he is not the only important player in Siena. They are based on teamwork and we expect a very difficult game. The most important point for my team is that all players are healthy and have worked really tough all the previous days. This game that will decide the second place of Group B, so it counts a lot, but the most important thing is what we are going to do in the Top 16."

Players

DOMERCANT, HENRY
Montepaschi Siena
"The game against Panathinaikos is a big game. They have many strong big men and a lot of good pick-'n'-roll players. They have great Euroleague experience and so they are a very strong team. This game is very important because the winning team will earn more respect through Europe. Furthermore, winning this game we can give us second place and it would be important for the Top 16, so we are really focused on this game."
TSARTSARIS, KOSTAS
Panathinaikos
"The game against Siena is very important, considering the fact that its result will judge who will finish in the second place of our group. It’s important for both teams. Siena will play against us after a great performance against the second team in the standings of the Italian championship, Virtus Bologna. They are in a good rhythm and they are always a tough team to beat, especially when playing in their home court, one of the hottest in the Euroleague. Siena is a team that can go far in the competition, one of the favorites to make the Final Four in Berlin. We are also in a good shape, after a rest that we truly needed. We had some time to recover from injuries and illnesses. We worked very hard during this period, added some elements in our game and played well against Kavala in the Greek League. Our target cannot be other than to win in Siena . It’s always like this when you step on the court, no matter how good your opponent is, or where you play."
Terrell McIntyre - Montepaschi SienaAfter both teams played their parts in a classic Euroleague matchup of great teams, Montepaschi hung on for an 82-77 victory in Group B over visiting Panathinaikos at home in Siena, Italy on Thursday. Despite improving to 7-2 while Panathinaikos dropped to 6-3, Montepaschi cannot claim second place in the group yet as each club won its home game against the other by 5 points. Second place will belong to Montepaschi if it wins the last regular season game or if both it and Panathinaikos lose. The game was a back-and-forth affair without many big runs but with plenty of high quality featuring a dominating inside performance by Panathinaikos center Mike Batiste, who collected 28 points and 8 rebounds. But it was the little-used Marco Carreretto who was the hero for Montepaschi with 15 points on 5-of-5 three-point shooting - a point more than he had totaled in his previous four appearances. Montepaschi knocked down 13 of 31 attempts from long range and forced 27 Panathinaikos turnovers in grabbing the victory. Terrell McIntyre led Montepaschi with 21 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Henry Domercant scored all 10 of his points in the first half while Ksistof Lavrinovic also tallied 10 points along with 8 rebounds and 5 steals. Shaun Stonerook finished with 5 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 6 steals. Besides Batiste, Panathinaikos did not really have another weapon. Dimitris Diamantidis collected 11 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Sarunas Jasikevicius added all 11 of his points in the final 13 minutes to go along with 4 assists. And Vassilis Spanoulis chipped in 9 points on three triples as well as 5 assists. But it was just not enough for Panathinaikos.

Benjamin Eze opened the game with a dunk for the hosts, who were playing without Morris Finley and Rimantas Kaukenas. And Panathinaikos answered with its tried and true pick-and-roll with Batiste getting a dunk. A long three-pointer miss by Montepaschi turned into a fast break lay-up by Stratos Perperoglou and then Batiste threw down another dunk to make it 2-6 early. After a Montepaschi time-out, Batiste made two foul shots for a 2-8 lead before Domercant got Montepaschi out of its offensive rut with a three-point shot. Lavrinovic trimmed the margin to one point only to have Perperoglou drain a long ball and the lead grew back to 7-11. Domercant sandwiched baskets around a Batiste score and Carraretto's first big three-point shot gave Montepaschi a 14-13 advantage. Perperoglou answered with a dunk only to have McIntyre drain back-to-back three-point shots for a 20-15 lead. And Drew Nicholas got Panathinaikos within 20-18 with a three-point shot just before the first quarter ended.

Mike Batiste - PanathinaikosDiamantidis opened the second quarter with a lay-up after a pick-and-roll to even the game at 20-20. Montepaschi however used the long ball to get some breathing room as Domercant and Arriel McDonald knocked down three-pointers for a 26-22 lead. And another triple by the newly-acquired veteran McDonald pushed the margin to 29-24. A Batiste dunk after a pick-and-roll with Spanoulis made it a three-point game, but Eze put back an offensive rebound and converted the three-point ply for a 32-26 lead. Spanoulis came back down and hit a three-point shot for Pana. Stonerook however grabbed the offensive rebound and hit the circus shot put-back to make it 34-29. Montepaschi was working harder than the guests at both ends and Romain Sato pushed the lead to eight points on a three-point shot from the wing, 37-29. It was 39-31 when Nicolas and Dimantidis hit back-to-back long balls to cut the margin to two points. But Sato and McIntyre both made two foul shots to give Montepaschi a 43-37 lead at the break.

The hosts struggled out of the gates in the second half with three turnovers and a missed three-pointer in their first four possessions. Batiste hit a layup then Dimantidis made two foul shots and the lead dwindled down to 43-41. Montepaschi got the ball into the paint though and Eze dunked for Montepaschi's first basket of the second half. Spanoulis however knocked down a three-point shot to give Athens the lead 45-46. Lavrinovic picked Batiste's pocket and threw down a dunk on the break for a 48-46 lead before Carraretto hit a big triple for a five point lead. And McIntyre's two foul shots gave Montepaschi a 53-46 cushion. Nikos Hatzivrettas stopped the 8-0 run with a three-point shot from the corner. But Carreretto struck again to make it 56-49. Stonerook had a chance to give Montepaschi a 10-point lead but missed a three-point shot. Jasikevicius did not miss however, draining his first shot of the night - a trey - to cut the deficit to four points, 56-52. Batiste then made two foul shots, another dunk and two more free throws to knot the game at 59-59. And the teams were deadlocked at 61-61 after three periods.

Arriel McDonald - Montepaschi SienaJasikevicius opened the fourth quarter with a driving layup and then Batiste hit a turn-around jumper in the lane as Panathinaikos jumped ahead 61-65. McIntyre made one free throw after a technical foul on Batiste but on the ensuing possession, Lavrinovic threw the ball away and Jasikevicius converted a three point play as Pana appeared poised for the road victory, ahead 62-68. Montepaschi twice missed three-pointers but got the offensive rebound and also drew two fouls on the Greens in one possession, which ended in Lavrinovic making two free throws to cut the lead to 64-68. And it was 66-68 after an Eze lay-in. But Batiste answered with another authoritative dunk and Spanoulis drained a triple from the corner and Athens was back ahead 68-73. Lavrinovic and Batiste both missed opportunities for three-point plays before McIntyre drove to the lane, was hammered by Batiste but made the lay-up and the extra free throw to bring Montepaschi within 73-75. Stonerook came up with a fine steal on Hatzivrettas and then left it on the wing for Carraretto, who drained his fourth three-point shot and put Montepaschi ahead 76-75. Jasikivicius answered with a jumper in the lane before McIntyre would hit a triple over Spanoulis for a 79-77 lead. Sato then came up with an outstanding defensive play, deflecting the inbounds pass from mid-court off Diamantidis and out of bounds. McIntyre would miss the three-point shot but Montepaschi got the offensive rebound and would swing the ball to Carreretto for another three-pointer and an 82-77 lead. Diamantidis was off from long range at the other end. And Montepaschi called a timeout with 8 seconds left hoping to win by more than 5 points and clinch second place. But the night's hero Carrerotto could not get a shot off before the buzzer.
Thursday, January 08, 2009
Euroleague.net
Referees: MITJANA, JUAN CARLOS (ESP), GARCIA ORTIZ, JOSE RAMON (ESP), SUTULOVIC, ZORAN (MNE)
Attendance: 6109
By Quarter1234
Montepaschi Siena20231821
Panathinaikos18192416
End of Quarter1234
Montepaschi Siena20436182
Panathinaikos18376177
Head coach: PIANIGIANI, SIMONE
Montepaschi Siena
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
 3FG
M-A
 FT
M-A
 Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
4 DOMERCANT, HENRY 29:19 10 2/5 2/6     2 2     4     1 2 2
5 MCINTYRE, TERRELL 35:05 21 2/4 3/9 8/9   3 3 4 3 4   1 2 9 24
6 MCDONALD, ARRIEL 14:29 6   2/3   1   1     1         5
8 EZE, BENJAMIN 25:00 9 4/5   1/1 2   2   2 3     5 1 5
9 CARRARETTO, MARCO 18:47 15   5/5             1     1 1 14
10 SATO, ROMAIN 23:16 6 0/3 1/4 3/4 4 1 5 1 3 2     4 3 5
12 LAVRINOVIC, KSISTOF 26:38 10 4/5 0/1 2/3 3 5 8   5 3 1   3 6 21
14 RESS, TOMAS 1:32                              
15 METREVELI, NIKA DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
16 CENTANNI, SIMONE DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
18 LECHTHALER, LUCA 1:53                         1   -1
20 STONEROOK, SHAUN 24:01 5 1/2 0/3 3/5 1 6 7 4 6 4 1   4 4 13
Team                   1           1
Totals 200:00 82 13/24 13/31 17/22 11 17 28 9 20 22 2 1 21 26 89
54.2% 41.9% 77.3%
Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating
Head coach: OBRADOVIC, ZELJKO
Panathinaikos
# Player Min Pts 2FG
M-A
 3FG
M-A
 FT
M-A
 Rebounds As St To Bl Fouls PIR
O D T Fv Ag Cm Rv
5 KECMAN, DUSAN 1:41                   1         -1
6 SPANOULIS, VASSILIS 19:37 9 0/2 3/5         5 2       3 2 11
7 PERPEROGLOU, STRATOS 15:54 7 2/2 1/2     2 2           3   5
8 BATISTE, MIKE 30:50 28 10/13   8/9 2 6 8   1 8     2 7 30
9 FOTSIS, ANTONIS 19:24     0/2   1   1     2 1 1 3   -6
10 HATZIVRETTAS, NIKOS 7:41 3   1/1             1     2    
11 NICHOLAS, DREW 25:29 6 0/1 2/7     3 3   2 1     2 1 3
12 TSARTSARIS, KOSTAS 19:12   0/2 0/1     2 2   3 1     3 2  
13 DIAMANTIDIS, DIMITRIS 30:59 11 3/4 1/3 2/2 3 6 9 4 3 5   1 3 4 19
14 PEKOVIC, NIKOLA 8:00 2     2/2           4     4 3 -3
15 SAKOTA, DUSAN DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
19 JASIKEVICIUS, SARUNAS 21:13 11 3/3 1/1 2/3       4 2 3     2 2 13
Team             3 3     1         2
Totals 200:00 77 18/27 9/22 14/16 6 22 28 13 13 27 1 2 27 21 73
66.7% 40.9% 87.5%
This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

PIANIGIANI, SIMONE
Montepaschi Siena
"I am really very happy, because we needed an exceptional performance to win this game. We were in trouble in the second half, because they had some key, well-rested players, such as Jasikevicius, who barely played before halftime and is a pick-and-roll master. We made some important defensive plays and were in control, but lacked confidence in offense despite our good shot selection, well-constructed shot. I do not think that being third or second changes a lot, but these games are truly extraordinary, and we give great feelings to our fans."
OBRADOVIC, ZELJKO
Panathinaikos
"Both teams have played very well, I want to congratulate Siena and its coach, because they have played realy well tonight. We had 27 turnovers, too many for a game like this, but I am happy with what the team is doing and are very confident for the Top 16."
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