June 20, 2013
Regular Season Game 6 - December 04, 2008 CET: 18:45 Local time: 19:45 - S.DARIUS AND S.GIRENAS SPORT CENTER
Zalgiris 69 - 80 Panathinaikos

Records

Ave.   Ave.
0-0 Final Four 0-0
0-0 Playoffs 0-0
0-0 Top 16 0-0
0-5 Regular Season 4-1
0-5 Overall 4-1

Referees

Crew Chief
BELOSEVIC, ILIJA, Serbia
Referee
CICORIA, GIANPAOLO, Italy
Umpire
JAVOR, DAMIR, Slovenia

Team Stats

Ave.   Ave.
60.4 Points 74.4
36.0 Rebounds 33.6
11.0 O. Rebounds 11.6
25.0 D. Rebounds 22.0
11.8 Assists 13.2
8.0 Steals 9.0
2.6 Blocks 3.4
19.4 Turnovers 14.0
44.7 % 2PT 52.9 %
28.3 % 3PT 30.6 %
58.3 % FT 72.4 %
56.2 Index 81.4
Team Stats - Zalgiris
Team Stats - Panathinaikos

Player Stats

Ave.   Ave.
13.6 / WOODS, LOREN Points 13.6 / PEKOVIC, NIKOLA
9.0 / WOODS, LOREN Rebounds 6.0 / Batiste
3.4 / WOODS, LOREN OR 2.6 / Batiste
5.6 / WOODS, LOREN DR 3.6 / Diamantidis
2.4 / Janavicius Assists 3.4 / Diamantidis
1.4 / Salenga Steals 1.4 / KECMAN, DUSAN
1.6 / WOODS, LOREN Blocks 1.0 / PEKOVIC, NIKOLA
3.2 / WOODS, LOREN Turnovers 2.4 / PEKOVIC, NIKOLA
65.6 % / WOODS, LOREN 2PT 72.2 % / Diamantidis
44.4 % / Janavicius 3PT 66.7 % / KECMAN, DUSAN
100.0 % / Kalnietis FT 100.0 % / KECMAN, DUSAN
21.6 / WOODS, LOREN Index 20.2 / Diamantidis
Team Roster - Zalgiris
Team Roster - Panathinaikos

THE TAKE

Two teams heading in completely different directions clash in Kaunas, Lithuania, on Thursday when Zalgiris hosts Panathinaikos. The Lithuanian champs are still hunting for their first win of the season, while Panathinaikos sits in a three-way tie for the top spot in Group B with a 4-1 record. Injuries and off-court issues have plagued Zalgiris all season long, but with a squad filled with homegrown players and young talents, head coach Gintaras Krapikas’s men can’t be overlooked. And if there is a head coach that will make sure his charges won’t overlook anyone, it’s Panathinaikos boss Zeljko Obradovic. The Greek champs will be confident, however, after crushing Zalgiris 78-51 in the season opener. Dimitris Diamantidis, who is having by far the best offensive season of his career to date, led the Greens with 15 points that night. Diamantidis is but one part of a strong Panathinaikos backcourt that also features Vassilis Spanoulis, Nikos Hatzivrettas, Drew Nicholas and Lithuanian star Sarunas Jasikevicius, who will play in his homeland for the first time since the 2004-05 season opener. Zalgris will counter with a number of players who grew up watching Jasikevicius shine for the national team like Zygimantas Janavicius, Mantas Kalnietis and Sarunas Vasiliaukas as well as struggling playmake Willie Deane, who is still looking for a breakout performance. Meanwhile former teammates of Jasikevicius’s on the Lithuanian national team, Jonas Maciulis, Dainius Salenga and Paulius Jankunas man the forward spots for Zalgiris next to center Loren Woods, who has been the team’s top player so far this season leading the club in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots. Panathinaikos can count on a deeper frontcourt with Nikola Pekovic, Mike Batiste, Kostas Tsartsaris and Antonios Fotsis in addition to Stratos Perperoglou at small forward. Zalgiris is averaging a league low 60.4 points per game this season – 14 fewer per game than Panathinaikos. And Zalgiris leads the league in turnovers as well. Those are two areas the hosts must improve on the have a chance of winning. If Deane can rise to the occasion and the rest of the backcourt can limit the turnovers and generate more points, the Zalgiris fans could provide the lift needed to pick up their team and push them towards victory. Nevertheless, Panathinaikos’s veteran squad has the experience to handle any situation and remains the favorite to win even in Kaunas.

GAME QUOTES

Zalgiris
  • Zalgiris is looking to avoid its worst ever start to a Euroleague season in seven years. The club also started the 2001-02 campaign with five consecutive losses, but has never started a season with six straight defeats.
  • A number of current Zalgiris players played alongside Panathinaikos’s Sarunas Jasikevicius on the Lithuanian national team. Jonas Maciulis and Saras were teammates on the 2008 Olympic team. Paulias Jankunas, Maciulis and Saras were teammates on the 2007 team that won the bronze medal at the European championships. Eurelijus Zukauskas and Dainius Salenga played with Saras on the 2004 Olympic team and won the gold together at the 2003 European Championships. Zukauskas, Saras and Tomas Masiulis also played together on several national teams between 1998 and 2000.
  • Rookie guard Sarunas Vasiliauskas made his Euroleague debut last week, but has not yet scored his first Euroleague points.
Panathinaikos
  • Guard Dimitris Diamantidis is closing in on 200 steals for his Euroleague Basketball career. Diamantidis is fifth on the all-time list with 196. Only four players – Theo Papaloukas, Gianlica Basile, Pablo Prigioni and J.R. Holden – have reached 200.
  • Diamantidis also needs just 1 more three-pointer to reach 100 for his Euroleague Basketball career. He has made at least 1 three-pointer in 12 straight Euroleague appearances dating back to last season.
  • Big man Mike Batiste is closing in on the Euroleague Basketball career top 10 list for rebounding. Batiste is currently 12th with 657 career boards. Next is Tanoka Beard with 663 and Jorge Garbajosa is 10th with 667. The next active player with a chance to crash the top 10 would be teammate Kostas Tsartsaris, who enters this week’s game with 643 career boards.
  • Tsartsaris needs only 3 more defensive rebounds to crack the all-time top 10 in that category. That distinction currently belongs to Anthony Parker with 460.
  • Two Panathinaikos players have recorded their Euroleague career highs against their Week 1 opponent, Zalgiris. Fragiskos Alvertis netted 22 points in a road win at Kaunas in October 22. Sarunas Jasikevicius, then with Maccabi, scored 37 in an overtime win in April 2004.
  • Jasikevicius grew up in Lithuania, but never played for Zalgiris. However his younger brother, Vytenis Jasikevicius, played three Euroleague games for Zalgiris during the 2006-07 season.
  • Center Giorgi Shermadini made club history last week as the youngest foreign player to play for Panathinaikos. Shermadini scored twice versus Egaleoas in his debut. The Georgian center is 19 years old. Antonio Davis debuted at the age of 22 (1990-91) as did Arian Komazec (1992-93).
Wednesday, December 03, 2008
Euroleague.net

Quotes Head Coaches

KRAPIKAS, GINTARAS
Zalgiris
"There is no doubt that Panathinaikos is the favorite in the upcoming game, but they play much better when they play at home and it’s hard to play here in Kaunas. They don‘t look so impressive on the road, but they managed to win so far with exception of that game in Barcelona when they lost by 24 points. Their game depends on Jasikevicius’s performance a lot. He had an off night in the last week game, but when he is hot, he makes his team look better. Panathinakos play very aggressive defense. It’s one of the key elements of their game. They are very deep, so every player has to share his minutes with teammates and if one won’t play very hard on defense, coach Obradovic will substitute him in a heartbeat. We have some problems with ill and injured players, but we have to forget about it and go all out."
OBRADOVIC, ZELJKO
Panathinaikos
"Despite their poor record in the Euroleague so far, Zalgiris Kaunas is a proud team with great history and judging by these facts, they will definitely want to beat us. We know that they try their best when they compete at home, so we have to be really concentrated in order to leave Lithuania with another road win. We have been working hard and really well all this time and the only thing we are thinking right now is about our team, not our opponents' situation. With no doubt I am expecting a very difficult game in Kaunas."

Players

JANKUNAS, PAULIUS
Zalgiris
"We played against them in the preseason, but back then it was hard to see their real potential. I didn’t play against them in the first game, but we watched a few tapes and it’s obvious they are very strong. They have two strong players at every position, so it is going to be tough. But we are practicing hard and getting better. We haven’t won so far in the competition, but maybe we will take a turn for the better on Thursday."
SPANOULIS, VASSILIS
Panathinaikos
"Of course Zalgiris Kaunas is a totally different team when they compete at home. Many of their players are much better players when they perform in Kaunas. We have to think of our game and stay concentrated in order to beat them on the road, since the regular season is shorter now and there is no time for mistakes. Panathinaikos never underestimates the opponents, so it won't happen in Lithuania either. We know the danger of this game and hopefully we are well prepared to get the result we want."
Mike Batiste - PanathinaikosPanathinaikos almost put both feet in the Top 16 and keeps fighting to win regular season Group B by downing Zalgiris 69-80 in Kaunas, Lithuania on Thursday night. Panathinaikos improved to 5-1 to tie for first place atop the standings and faces a direct opponent in the race to win Group B, Regal FC Barcelona, in Athens, Greece next week. Meanwhile, Zalgiris dropped to 0-6 and visits Montepaschi Siena in Week 7. Sarunas Jasikevicius paced the winners with 15 points in his home country. Mike Batiste added 14 on 7-for-8 two-pointers while Nikola Pekovic had 13 and 8 rebounds for Panathinaikos. Paulius Jankunas led Zalgiris with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Jonas Maciulis and Mantas Kalnietis each had 10 points for the hosts. Jasikevicius shined late in the first quarter to give Zalgiris a 13-22 edge after 10 minutes. Dimitris Diamantidis and Pekovic took over to boost the guests' margin to 26-40 at halftime. Zalgiris did not recover, as Panathinaikos used outstanding defense and three-point accuracy to keep a double-digit lead all the way until the final buzzer.

Batiste dunked it to get Panathinaikos going but Willie Deane answered with a five-meter jumper and fed Zygimantas Janavicius for a fast break layup, good for a 4-2 Zalgiris edge. The Greens did not panic, as Antonis Fotsis silenced the crowd with a dunk while Batiste sank a jumper to put Panathinaikos back ahead, 4-6. Maciulis fed Loren Woods for an easy dunk and banked in a three-pointer, good for a 9-6 Zalgiris edge. Fotsis dunked it again, as coach Zeljko Obradovic tried to change game rhythm by placing Jasikevicius and Diamantidis on court. Batiste hit back-to-back jump hooks to restore a 9-12 Panathinaikos edge. Jankunas scored over Diamantidis but Stratos Perperoglou and Jasikevicius answered with consecutive layups. Zalgiris called timeout at 11-16 but now struggled against the guests' zone defense. Jasikevicius struck from downtown but free throws by Jankunas kept Zalgiris within 13-18. More foul shots by Jasikevicius and a tip-in by Pekovic boosted the guests' lead to 13-22 after 10 minutes.

Paulius Jankunas - ZalgirisPanathinaikos kept controlling the boards early in the second quarter, but picked up three quick fouls that did not allow the guests to put much pressure on defense. Dainius Salenga nailed a triple but Jasikevicius took over with a layup in transition. Tadas Klimavicius provided a highlight with a fast break dunk but a jumper by Jasikevicius kept Panathinaikos way ahead, 18-26. Zalgiris called timeout to readjust its defense but Jasikevicius scored off a midcourt steal while Dusan Kecman added a fast break layup to make an 11-point game, 19-30. Deane brose the guests' zone defense with a three-pointer and added free throws to bring Zalgiris within 24-31. Diamantidis nailed a corner triple - his 100th in the competition and Panathinaikos' first in this game - while Fotsis and Pekovic took over with consecutive dunks to break the game open, 24-38. Pekovic capped a 0-9 Panathinaikos run with free throws but Maciulis beat the buzzer with a close jumper for a 26-40 Zalgiris deficit at the break.

Kalnietis tried to ignit the hosts' comeback with a three-pointer but Vassilis Spanoulis answered with his trademark driving layup and soon added a fast break basket for a 15-point Panathinaikos lead, 29-44. Jankunas scored down low, but Zalgiris kept struggling in defense. Fotsis buried an open triple and even when Jankunas kept pacing Zalgiris with free throws, Perperoglou also struck from downtown - exactly from the same spot - to boost the Greens' lead to 32-50. Kalnietis sank a triple that Maciulis followed with a backdoor layup but Batiste took over with a put-back dunk. Woods score inside but Zalgiris only traded baskets now. Panathinaikos improved its defense while Pekovic dunked it again for a 39-54 margin. Kalnietis kept trying with a driving layup while a fast break basket by Janavicius gave the hosts some hope at 43-54. Dusan Sakota nailed a triple from the top of the key and even when Woods shined with an acrobatic tip-in, Diamantidis also struck from downtown for a 47-61 Panathinaikos margin after 30 minutes.

Zalgiris needed a quick comeback to return to the game but Pekovic beat Woods twice in the low post and for a 47-65 Panathinaikos lead. Zalgiris could not find answers in offense while a fast break basket by Drew Nicholas sealed the outcome, 47-67. Zalgiris called timeout and Woods tried to change things with a power layup but Jasikevicius answered from downtown to make it a 21-point game, 49-70, with 7 minutes to go. Batiste nailed a floating jumper that Jankunas erased with a put-back layup. Diamantidis provided a highlight with a no-look assist to Batiste, as Panathinaikos tried to provide some showtime once the outcome was clear. Zalgiris kept trying but everything was said and done already, as the hosts will have to keep looking for their first Euroleague win this season. Meanwhile, Panathinaikos left the court ready to fight Barcelona in a highly-anticipated showdown next week.
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Euroleague.net
Referees: BELOSEVIC, ILIJA (SRB), CICORIA, GIANPAOLO (ITA), JAVOR, DAMIR (SLO)
Attendance: 4751
By Quarter1234
Zalgiris13132122
Panathinaikos22182119
End of Quarter1234
Zalgiris13264769
Panathinaikos22406180
Head coach: KRAPIKAS, GINTARAS
Zalgiris
# 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
7 WOODS, LOREN 35:20 6 3/8   0/1 1 4 5   2 1 1 2 3 3 5
8 MACIULIS, JONAS 37:50 10 1/2 2/8 2/4 2   2 4 1 3     4 6 7
9 KALNIETIS, MANTAS 29:53 10 2/4 2/6     1 1 5   1     5   4
10 JANAVICIUS, ZYGIMANTAS 18:32 4 2/6 0/1 0/2   1 1 1         4 3 -2
11 ZUKAUSKAS, EURELIJUS 3:20           2 2 1             3
12 KLIMAVICIUS, TADAS 6:54 2 1/1               1       1 2
13 JANKUNAS, PAULIUS 34:26 21 8/11 0/1 5/7 7 6 13 2 1 3     2 6 32
15 MASIULIS, TOMAS DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
17 DEANE, WILLIE 16:20 7 1/6 1/1 2/2   1 1 1   3   1 2 2  
20 SALENGA, DAINIUS 4:39 3   1/2 0/2   1 1     1       3 3
21 MILAKNIS, ARTURAS 12:46 6   2/5     1 1 1             5
Team                                
Totals 200:00 69 18/38 8/24 9/18 10 17 27 15 4 13 1 3 20 24 59
47.4% 33.3% 50%
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 14:46 2 1/1       3 3   1       3 1 4
6 SPANOULIS, VASSILIS 22:01 6 2/6 0/3 2/2   3 3 5 2 3   1 1 3 7
7 PERPEROGLOU, STRATOS 19:46 5 1/3 1/1 0/1   3 3   2 1     3 2 5
8 BATISTE, MIKE 20:48 14 7/8     1 2 3 1           2 19
9 FOTSIS, ANTONIS 24:01 9 3/3 1/4   1 2 3 2   2     4   5
10 HATZIVRETTAS, NIKOS 10:43 2 1/1 0/1         2   1     1   1
11 NICHOLAS, DREW 14:46 4 2/2 0/1     1 1       1   2   3
13 DIAMANTIDIS, DIMITRIS 21:10 7   2/3 1/4   2 2 2   3 1   3 4 6
14 PEKOVIC, NIKOLA 19:12 13 5/7   3/4 3 5 8     2 1   2 3 18
15 SAKOTA, DUSAN 11:32 3   1/2         1   2     4 1 -2
19 JASIKEVICIUS, SARUNAS 21:15 15 5/8 1/3 2/2 1 3 4 4 2 1     1 4 22
Team                                
Totals 200:00 80 27/39 6/18 8/13 6 24 30 17 7 15 3 1 24 20 88
69.2% 33.3% 61.5%
This game is not yet played

Head Coaches

KRAPIKAS, GINTARAS
Zalgiris
"I have to congratulate Panathinaikos for their win tonight. Panathinaikos has superb players. When my players tried to help each other in defense they always gave the ball to an open player. Pick-and-roll is one of the most important plays in basketball and they played that element of the game close to perfection. We stuck with the plan in the beginning, but we started to play individually later on and lost our rhythm."
OBRADOVIC, ZELJKO
Panathinaikos
"I think that we played a good game and am happy that my players did a good job. We played good defense and it was the key to win in Kaunas. Our good defense in the first half let us build the lead. We tried to use halfcourt pressing, then switched to a zone and so on. We tried to surprise them. We also had opportunities to shoot and I am happy that my players took those opportunities. They are high quality players and they must shoot when finding open looks."

Players

KALNIETIS, MANTAS
Zalgiris
"I couldn’t find my rhythm in the first half, but during halftime coach told me to calm down a little bit and I got things going in the second half. It wasn’t enough to win the game. It was a tough game because our opponents weren’t a playground team. They are one of the best teams in Europe and it was hard to play against them, especially for Janavicius. We had to play against Spanoulis, Diamantidis or Jasikevicius and well, we are just different caliber players. I think we gain valuable experience in games like this. It will help us to move forward."
FOTSIS, ANTONIS
Panathinaikos
"It was very nice to play against Zalgiris today. Their fans were very supporting, but we played better and I am happy that we have won. We are playing very well right now and I hope we will continue to play like this. Everybody in our team is motivated and wants to play at our best. We had a big lead, but it wasn’t an easy game. Maybe we made it look easy, because we played really well. We were more focused and more prepared for the game. Zalgiris is a young team and they have a lot of potential. They have all the future in front of them."
JASIKEVICIUS, SARUNAS
Panathinaikos
"I want to congratulate Zalgiris’ fans. They are incredible. We won, but the basketball atmosphere in Kaunas was as if we had lost the game. When Arturas Milaknis hit that three-pointer they reacted in a way that I thought that Zalgiris had just won the Euroleague. I really have good feelings for Zalgiris and its fans. I was on the opposite side tonight and had to play for my team. It is not my first good game against Zalgiris, because they like to keep big man under the basket and this defense doesn’t always work against the pick-and-roll. We executed a lot of good pick-and-rolls and it worked well for me. I had a lot of opportunities for open shots."
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