Easy victory in Patra
Olympiacos made a power display against Apollon in Patra. The 'reds' began the second round of the Basket League SKRATS in an impressive fashion besting Apollon 67-56.
Apollon tried to impose a fast paced tempo, but Olympiacos immediately took control of the situation. Spanoulis, when not scoring, was creating plays for his team mantes with the first quarter ending 13-14 for our team.
In the second quarter, the entrance of Printezis, Lojeski and Sloukas improved the offensive function of our team and hence the 'reds' took the difference to two digit levels for the first time (24-34).
The beginning of the third quarter was impressive for Olympiacos. With a partial score of 3-15 the difference was at +22 for the players of Giannis Sfairopoulos (27-49) at 26' while the hosts closed in 39-49 and the third quarter ended 39-51.
Bryant Dunston was dominant in both posts in the fourth quarter. The American center with superb defensive plays and excellent offensive choices helped Olympiacos write 44-60 on the scoreboard at 36'. During the last four minutes the guests were only preserving strength and the victory was for Olympiacos 56-67.
The quarters: 13-14, 24-34, 39-51, 56-67
Apollon (Vetoulas): Skordilis 12, Argyropoulos 2, Galloway 1, Penn 5 (1), Fitzpatrick 8 (2), Αntonakis, Batis, El-Amin 21 (3), Molfetas, Georgalis 6 (1).
Olympiacos (Sfairopoulos): Petway 4 (8reb), Hunter 4, Dunston 9 (4reb, 2bl), Spanoulis 10 (2 3p, 7as), Darden 5 (5reb), Sloukas 4 (1), Lojeski 13 (3 3p, 2reb), Printezis 12 (2 3p), Mantzaris 6 (1 3p, 3reb, 1as), Katsivelis.
GIANNIS SFAIROPOULOS: "It was an important victory for us because we had been playing in a difficult home court against a very well worked team, very athletic and with good Greek and foreign players. We had prepared for a tough game and our level of concentration was good for most of the game. We built a safety net and kept it to the end. Congratulations to my players, congratulations to Apollon as well. I would like to thank our fans for being here and supporting us tonight".
KOSTAS SLOUKAS: "We knew that Apollon is a quality team and very well prepared. We had to be ready as well, we remained focused and we did well for most part of the game".
GIORGOS PRINTEZIS: "We were serious for yet another game, we have showed against all opponents up to now that we aim to maintain the rhythm, remain serious in Greece and in Europe and always give 100%".