2014-15PlayoffsGame 3
April 21, 2015 CET: 19:00
Local time: 20:00 PEACE AND FRIENDSHIP STADIUM

Olympiacos holds off Barcelona to take control of series

In a thrilling showdown Tuesday at Peace and Friendship Stadium that went down to the wire, Olympiacos Piraeus took a 2-1 lead in its best-of-five playoffs series by edging FC Barcelona 73-71. Olympiacos hosts Game 4 on Thursday with the chance to seal its ticket to the 2015 Turkish Airlines Euroleague Final Four; Barcelona needs to win Game 4 to take the series back to Palau Blaugrana. Georgios Printezis paced the winners with 19 points and Vassilis Spanoulis added 15 and 8 assists for Olympiacos. Juan Carlos Navarro led Barcelona with 14 points. Tomas Satoransky added 12, while Justin Doellman and Maciej Lampe each had 10 for the guests. Barcelona had a strong start, but a three-point play by Bryant Dunston gave Olympiacos its first lead, 13-10. Spanoulis and Matt Lojeski allowed Olympiacos to keep a 26-23 margin after 10 minutes. Alex Abrines shined with back-to-back baskets to tie the game at 36-36. Spanoulis and Brent Petway fueled a 10-0 run that gave Olympiacos a double-digit lead, 46-36, right after the break. Barcelona found a go-to guy in Lampe, who had 6 points in a 0-10 run that gave the guests a 59-60 edge after three quarters. Barcelona was held scoreless for more than five minutes while Othello Hunter and Printezis boosted their team's lead to 70-62 with less than three minutes remaining. Navarro brought Barcelona within 70-69 and got a chance to win the game, but Abrines missed from downtown at the buzzer.

First quarter: Spanoulis puts Reds ahead

Satoransky got Barcelona going with a three-pointer. Bryant Dunston stepped up with a power basket, but Ante Tomic hit a one-handed floater. A driving layup by Spanoulis kept Olympiacos within 4-5. Satoransky took over with another bomb from downtown before Tremmell Darden nailed a mid-range jumper and Spanoulis fed Georgios Printezis with his trademark one-handed baseline jumper. DeShaun Thomas scored around the basket, but free throws by Vangelis Mantzaris and a layup-plus-foul by Dunston gave the Reds their first lead, 13-10. Lampe banked in a five-meter jumper and erased Matt Lojeski's fast break with another mid-range shot. A layup by Tomic put Barcelona back ahead, 15-16. Mario Hezonja shined with a driving layup that Spanoulis bettered with a step-back triple. Dimitris Agravanis ignited the crowd with a three-point play and Spanoulis hit free throws. Brad Oleson and Lojeski traded three-pointers, but Doellman kept Barcelona within 26-23 after 10 minutes.

Second quarter: Olympiacos bounces back

Tibor Pleiss hit a running shot early in the quarter, as Olympiacos tried a different backcourt with Oliver Lafayette and Kostas Sloukas together on court. Sloukas found Printezis for a backdoor layup and Othello Hunter scored down low to make it a 5-point game. Pleiss hit his trademark jump hook off the glass, which Printezis improved upon with a triple. Navarro came off a screen to answer from downtown. A backdoor layup by Satoransky caused Olympiacos to call timeout at 33-32. The hosts kept struggling to score until Petway stepped up with a three-pointer. Abrines downed a six-meter jumper and followed that with a big basket in penetration to tie the game at 36-36. Spanoulis split foul shots and a driving layup by Sloukas gave Olympiacos a bit of fresh air. Spanoulis made free throws on Tomic's third foul and another triple by Petway boosted the hosts' lead to 44-36 at halftime.

Third quarter: Lampe rescues Barcelona

Both teams struggled to score after the break until Printezis hit a baseline jumper. Doellman stepped up with a catch-and-shoot three-pointer, as the game turned into a physical battle. Lafayette shined with a reverse layup, but Satoransky banked in a close shot and Doellman added a three-point play to keep Barcelona within 48-44. After Oleson hit a six-meter jumper, Dunston and Doellman exchanged free throws. An unbelievable off-balance triple by Spanoulis gave Olympiacos a 53-48 margin. Olympiacos entered the foul penalty, however, forcing Coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos to change his defensive strategy. Navarro made free throws and Dunston split attempts. A three-pointer by Mantzaris gave the Reds a 57-50 margin. Tomic hit 2-of-4 foul shots and Lampe stepped up for Barcelona with 6 quick points, including a put-back basket that gave Barcelona a 57-58 lead. Navarro made free throws and a put-back slam by Printezis kept Olympiacos within 59-60.

Fourth quarter: Down to the last shot!

Hunter hustled to get an offensive board and scored down low early in the quarter, as Barcelona committed 3 team fouls in two minutes. Printezis buried a big three-pointer to boost the hosts' lead to 4. Mantzaris found Hunter for a huge alley-oop slam that ignited the Olympiacos faithful at 66-60. Barcelona had been scoreless for seven minutes before a free throw by Tomic made it 66-61 with over three minutes remaining. Printezis made free throws and soon added an alley-oop slam that seemed to seal the outcome. Satoransky and Navarro made free throws to get Barcelona within 4. Spanoulis missed free throws and a layup-plus-foul by Navarro made it 70-69. Oleson missed twice from downtown and free throws by Spanoulis gave Olympiacos a 72-69 margin. The Reds fouled Navarro with 8.3 seconds left and he hit both attempts. Printezis split attempts, but Abrines missed from downtown at the buzzer.

Georgios Printezis - Olympiacos Piraeus - EB14
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Euroleague.net
Referees: BELOSEVIC, ILIJA; ROCHA, FERNANDO; VOJINOVIC, MILIJA
Attendance: 11624
By Quarter1234
Olympiacos Piraeus26181514
FC Barcelona23132411
End of Quarter1234
Olympiacos Piraeus26445973
FC Barcelona23366071
Olympiacos Piraeus
  Rebounds Blocks Fouls
# Player Min Pts 2FG 3FG FT O D T As St To Fv Ag Cm Rv PIR
4 PETWAY, BRENT 9:00 6 0/1 2/3     1 1     1 1   2   3
5 HUNTER, OTHELLO 19:49 6 3/4   0/2 1 6 7     1     3 2 8
6 DUNSTON, BRYANT 19:53 8 2/4   4/5 1 1 2     1 2 1 2 3 8
7 SPANOULIS, VASSILIS 28:11 15 1/3 2/5 7/10   1 1 8   3     2 9 20
9 PAPAPETROU, IOANNIS 7:07         1 3 4           2   2
10 SLOUKAS, KOSTAS 13:20 2 1/1 0/1     1 1 5 1       3 1 6
15 PRINTEZIS, GEORGIOS 26:27 19 5/7 2/6 3/4 1 3 4 1 1 1 1   1 4 21
16 AGRAVANIS, DIMITRIS 4:51 3 1/1 0/1 1/1                 3 1  
17 MANTZARIS, VANGELIS 25:22 5 0/1 1/1 2/2   2 2 2         4 2 6
20 LAFAYETTE, OLIVER 14:38 2 1/1 0/3     1 1 3 1 1     4 1  
21 DARDEN, TREMMELL 4:28 2 1/1       1 1               3
24 LOJESKI, MATT 26:54 5 1/2 1/5   1 1 2           3 1  
Team           1 4 5     2         3
Totals 200:00 73 16/26 8/25 17/24 6 25 31 19 3 10 4 1 29 24 80
        61.5% 32% 70.8%
Head coach: SFAIROPOULOS, IOANNIS
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
FC Barcelona
  Rebounds Blocks Fouls
# Player Min Pts 2FG 3FG FT O D T As St To Fv Ag Cm Rv PIR
5 DOELLMAN, JUSTIN 30:02 10 1/3 1/5 5/5   2 2 1         2 6 11
8 HEZONJA, MARIO 9:46 2 1/1 0/1     1 1               2
9 HUERTAS, MARCELINHO 15:19   0/1 0/1     2 2 6 1 3     3 1 2
10 ABRINES, ALEX 13:22 4 2/4 0/1   1   1           1 2 3
11 NAVARRO, JUAN CARLOS 28:59 14 1/5 1/4 9/9 1 1 2 6   1   1 2 8 19
13 SATORANSKY, TOMAS 24:55 12 2/5 2/3 2/2 1 2 3 2 2     2 5 4 12
21 PLEISS, TIBOR 10:27 4 2/4       3 3     1     2 1 3
23 THOMAS, DESHAUN 8:46 2 1/3                     1   -1
24 OLESON, BRAD 19:11 5 1/1 1/5     2 2           2   1
30 LAMPE, MACIEJ 15:26 10 4/5 0/1 2/2 2 3 5 1   1 1 1 2 1 12
34 NACHBAR, BOSTJAN DNP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
44 TOMIC, ANTE 23:47 8 2/3   4/8   5 5 4 2 1     4 6 15
Team           5 2 7               7
Totals 200:00 71 17/35 5/21 22/26 10 23 33 20 5 7 1 4 24 29 86
        48.6% 23.8% 84.6%
Head coach: PASCUAL, XAVI

Head Coaches

SFAIROPOULOS, IOANNIS
Olympiacos Piraeus
"We got a great win against a big opponent. After Game 2 in Barcelona, the situation changed and we had to manage it. We controlled the game, we proved our character and I believe that our victory is fair. In a game like that you can't avoid some bad moments, but it is a great accomplishment for our defense that in the fourth quarter Barcelona scored only one basket. Now we are 2-1 and we have to come back and give another fight, with the support of our fans, who gave us an outstanding push. Barcelona is a great team and we were waiting from them to react and come back. Teamwork is always a key factor to success. Look Papapetrou who grabbed 4 boards, Sloukas with 5 assists, Darden with a good defensive job."
PASCUAL, XAVI
FC Barcelona
"Both teams could have won that game, but in the end Olympiacos took the victory. We fought to beat them, but we didn't score enough in the last period. However we managed to come back and have the chance to escape with the victory, but it didn't happen. There is a totally new situation now and we will try to tie the series on Thursday. We need to improve some parts in our game and be strong believers. It has been a complicated match and we had good and bad moments. I am satisfied with the desire and the efforts of my players, but we have to be more consistent."

Players

DUNSTON, BRYANT
Olympiacos Piraeus
"In the first game played in Barcelona, they outrebounded us and that happened tonight, but we worked much better in the defensive end. There is no doubt that the series will be decided by the defense. We have now the home-court advantage, but Barcelona is an excellent team. Now we have to go home, sleep well, rest a little bit and return for the next big fight."
MANTZARIS, VANGELIS
Olympiacos Piraeus
"The defense we played in the second and the fourth quarter made the difference. It is very important in such a crucial game to keep your opponents to a low score. We are talking about Barcelona which has lots of offensive talent. Nothing is done yet. We have Game 4 on Thursday and we have to play the same good defense, no matter the pressure or whatever. All the players gave 150% of their potential and our fans gave as a big push."
PRINTEZIS, GEORGIOS
Olympiacos Piraeus
"We won with a little bit of everything. It was another final, if I can say it like this. But still we have one more game. Barcelona plays very dangerous, especially outside. We saw the way they can play today. So right now, we have to continue and forget this win."
TOMIC, ANTE
FC Barcelona
"It is always tough to lose a game and it is tougher to lose two in a row. But I remain optimistic and I believe that we will play better and be more ready for the next match."
LAMPE, MACIEJ
FC Barcelona
"We lost tonight, but we came very close to win it. We are not disappointed, because the team has the potential, the talent and the will to improve its game and tie the series on Thursday."