Panathinaikos AKTOR extended its unbeaten streak, making an impressive start to the new year with a home victory over Virtus Segafredo Bologna (111-90) in Round 19 of the EuroLeague.
Ömer Yurtseven set a career-high in the competition, finishing the game with 27 points, while Kendrick Nunn also contributed 27 points.
The game showcased a strong offensive tempo, with Panathinaikos AKTOR taking an early lead, though Will Clyburn's efforts kept Virtus Segafredo Bologna close (19-17 at the 7th minute). However, the Greens closed the first quarter with a 9-point advantage (28-20 at the 9th minute).
The visitors managed to narrow the gap to a single possession (38-36 at the 15th minute), but they struggled to match the intensity of the Greens in the latter part of the second quarter. With a balanced offensive approach and Ömer Yurtseven already achieving a career-high performance by halftime, Panathinaikos AKTOR concluded the first half with a 12-point lead (54-42).
At the start of the third quarter, the lead widened further (64-49 at the 23rd minute) and remained at a safe margin for most of the period (69-55 at the 26th minute & 79-66 at the 30th minute).
In the final quarter, Virtus Segafredo Bologna attempted to increase defensive pressure on Panathinaikos AKTOR but to no avail. The players under Ergin Ataman maintained a solid defensive performance. When necessary (81-75 at the 35th minute), the Greens connected on multiple three-pointers, extending the lead to +15 (95-80 at the 37th minute) to effectively seal the game.
Quarters: 30-23, 54-42, 79-66, 111-90.
PANATHINAIKOS AKTOR (Ataman): Kalaitzakis, Brown 12 (4), Sloukas 5 (1), Osman 11 (3), Papapetrou 5 (1), Grant 6 (2), Nunn 27 (5), Gabriel 2, Hernangómez 16 (3), Mitoglou, Yurtseven 27.
VIRTUS BOLOGNA (Ivanovic): Cordinier 11 (1), Belinelli 8 (2), Pajola 8 (2), Clyburn 25 (5), Hackett, Grazulis 12 (2), Morgan 4, Polonara 3 (1), Diouf 15, Akele 2, Tucker 2.
Ataman: "We played perfect basketball"
Ergin Ataman expressed his utmost satisfaction with Panathinaikos AKTOR's performance in the home game against Virtus Segafredo Bologna on Friday, January 3.
Here’s what he said in detail:
"Today, we played perfect basketball. In the first game of 2025, we performed like true champions of 2024. We started very well offensively. Defensively, we had issues with Clyburn, who made some big shots. But later, we found solutions on defense.
In the second half, we kept up the same pace. Bologna is a dangerous team at the moment. In the final quarter, we resolved our offensive issues with Nunn. Juancho played an excellent game. Yurtseven delivered his best performance of the season. Everyone contributed to the team. Brown also made valuable contributions towards the end. It was fantastic basketball.
Before the game, I said it wasn’t time for a party, and our fans supported us spectacularly throughout the match. By the end, it felt like a party because we played incredibly well in this first game of 2025.
To be precise, no. The loss to Efes didn’t affect me or the team because we didn’t have our best player, our top scorer this season, Kendrick Nunn. At that point in the season, we realized we had some defensive issues. We needed to be more aggressive. We discussed and worked on it. Now, I believe our aggressiveness and motivation are at a higher level. There’s a stronger flame at OAKA now; it’s not like before. We draw more motivation from it and feel more comfortable.
The real party will only happen when we win the title in Abu Dhabi. After each victory, we can celebrate for 15-20 minutes if we play like this. But we cannot throw a party just because we’ve won one, two, or three EuroLeague games. Our goal is to win the trophy, once again.
Yurtseven is a player who thrives with more minutes; he’s a player who relies on psychology. Today, he took on the role of the starting center. Last week, he had the same role but didn’t perform well. Gabriel had played better then. Yurtseven has the potential, and today I saw he was very focused. He’s a player of psychology. He started the game well and continued that way.
Mathias is the best center in the EuroLeague over the past 2-3 years. I’m very happy to be working with him and to see him staying for another three years at Panathinaikos. Juancho has shown excellent character and elevated his performance this year. He was also part of last season's historic journey. I’m delighted he signed for another two seasons.
It’s incredibly important, and I’m very proud of our president, Dimitris Giannakopoulos, for extending Mathias' contract for three years after such a serious injury. No one else in Europe could have done this. It shows that we are a family. There’s mutual support.
We believe in Mathias and look forward to his return. I’m confident he will bring many more moments of pride to the club.
Thank you, Mr. Giannakopoulos, for signing Mathias."
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