Olympiacos bests Crvena Zvezda in the IBT Crete final
Olympiacos put on an excellent performance in their second game in Crete, defeating Crvena Zvezda 87-77 in the IBT Crete final.
Mbaye Ndiaye was the European champions’ best player, finishing with 16 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. Jean Monteró also made an impressive debut in the ‘red & white’, with the Dominican guard recording 12 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists in the final.
Unlike their semifinal performance, Olympiacos came out strong from the opening tip. Led by N’diaye, who made all 4 of his shots (2/2 2-pointers and 2/2 3-pointers), the ‘red & whites’ built a 9-point lead (26-17) by the end of the first quarter. Jean Monteró’s debut generated plenty of excitement in Heraklion, and the Dominican guard capped the opening period with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the corner.
At the start of the second quarter, it was Montero’s turn to shine. Giorgios Bartzokas opted for a 3-guard lineup, initially using Montero, Tyler Dorsey and Netzipoglou, before replacing Omiros with Cory Joseph. Olympiacos moved the ball exceptionally well and consistently created quality scoring opportunities. Montero and Dorsey knocked down shots from beyond the arc, while a layup by Joseph gave our team a 9-point lead (41-32) with 3’ remaining in the first half.
Olympiacos went into halftime with a 13-point advantage (50-37), with N’diaye the game’s only player in double figures at that point, having scored 12 points.
The second half began in equally impressive fashion for Olympiacos. Tyson Ward was outstanding at both ends of the floor, while Montero running the point helped the European champions produce excellent offensive basketball considering how early it is in the preseason.
Free throws from the Dominican guard gave Olympiacos a 21-point lead (64-43) with 6:21’’ remaining in the third quarter. With those free throws, Montero also became the second Olympiacos player to reach double figures.
The pace of the game slowed during the second half of the third quarter, but Evan Fournier found scoring beyond the arc and reached 11 points, allowing Olympiacos to maintain control. However, a poor 2-minute stretch filled with consecutive bad decisions allowed the Serbian side to cut the deficit to nine points (71-62) following a 3-pointer by Kramer.
Olympiacos entered the fourth quarter with a 12-point lead (75-63), and at times the European and Greek champions once again produced high-level basketball.
Ndiaye continued to impress and capped an outstanding first performance in the red and white in perfect fashion. The forward finished as the game’s MVP with 16 points, leading Olympiacos to victory in the IBT Crete final.
The quarters: 17-26, 37-50, 63-75, 77-87.
