Olympiacos finishes the preseason undefeated

Olympiacos secured a victory in their final friendly before the start of their official campaign, defeating Maccabi 77–72 in Nicosia.

Mbaye N’Diaye was our team’s leading scorer, while Tyler Dorsey and Donta Hall also delivered excellent performances.

Olympiacos lost Nikola Milutinov at the start of the game, with the Serbian center suffering from tendinitis in his left rectus femoris. Kostas Papanikolaou and Giorgos Bourneles were also left out of the 14-man roster.

Giorgos Bartzokas started the game with Montero, Fournier, Ward, Vezenkov and Milutinov. Tyson Ward scored our team’s first points, while a 3-pointer by Fournier gave Olympiacos their first lead of the game at 6–5. The European champions made a very poor start, committing 10 turnovers in the opening quarter and allowing Maccabi to take a 12-point lead (10–22) by the end of the period.

Tyler Dorsey ended Olympiacos’ offensive struggles in the second quarter. The Greek-American guard hit two consecutive threes to make it 18–27, forcing Oded Kattash to call a timeout. Dorsey became the first player to reach double figures, while Olympiacos significantly improved their performance and cut the deficit to 27–31 midway through the second quarter.

With Vezenkov and Montero entering the game, Olympiacos became even more aggressive offensively. Dorsey’s 3-pointer put the 'red & whites' back in front at 35–33, while the first half ended tied at 35–35.

At the start of the second half, Ward and Vezenkov were impressive, with the American forward once again putting in an all-around performance. Before the start of the 4rth quarter, he had recorded 12 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. However, during the second half of the third quarter, Olympiacos lost their focus and also lost Antonis Karagiannidis to fouls, eventually entering the final period trailing 57–60.

With N’Diaye making an immediate impact in the final quarter, Olympiacos initially regained the lead at 62–60. The Senegalese forward was outstanding at this stage of the game, reaching 14 points with 4' remaining. In the closing stages, alongside N’Diaye, Joseph and Hall stepped up for our team, converting crucial possessions and securing a 77–72 victory for Olympiacos.

The quarters: 10–22, 35–35, 57–60, 77–72.