# BC Panathinaikos vs BC Efes Pilsen (Game 3) 14.04.2005 / 18:10 NBATV (4:30 ET)



## spongyfungy (Oct 22, 2003)

*BC Panathinaikos vs BC Efes Pilsen (Game 3) 14.04.2005 / 18:10 NBATV (12:30pm ET)*

_ISTANBUL (Turkish League) - Efes Pilsen has guaranteed the top spot in Turkey with two weeks to go. Efes led Ulker by 2 wins and by virtue of winning both games against the archrival the 3 time defending champions is assured of the top spot.

But it was not easy for Efes. The game against 3rd place Besiktas was only 40 hours after an exhausting game against Panathinaikos. Efes played against the Greek team twice in the week with both games witnessing very ugly scenes and two extremely hard fought encounters. The two teams will play against each other on Thursday with the winner going to the Final Four. So Efes neither was physically nor mentally ready for the game.

Still they managed to fend off a stubborn challenge from Besiktas. After Besiktas led 37-31 at the half Efes brought a furious rally in the second. 

Hitting 19 of 24 shots was very out of character and Efes had to rely on individual brilliance rather than team work for this. Efes had only 7 assists the whole game. Henry Domercant and Nicola Prkacin combined for 28 of the 50 points in the second half. But they were trumped by 33 points from Khalid El Amin and Ratko Varda.
The X factor was Mustafa Abi. The feisty small forward who played for Besiktas last year, knew all the defensive tricks and scored 10 points in the second half on 5/5 shooting, all taking place at very critical moments. The last one gave Efes a 77-73 cushion with 37 seconds left. The rest of the way was tactical free throws. Eventually Efes won 81-78.

Last year when Mustafa Abi played for Besiktas, Efes had lost both games. This year Efes won both contests. So Mustafa Abi might very well be the deciding factor in this match up after all.

Rivalry turns sour

The two clubs with the greatest fan support in Turkey clashed this week. 

Fenerbahce demolished Galatasaray 90-63. With Marc Salyers having a career game: 27 points, 14 rebounds, 7 assists._

http://www.fiba.com/pages/en/news/latest_news_article.asp?r_act_news=6664&r_cat=8&page=1


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## spongyfungy (Oct 22, 2003)

*Re: BC Panathinaikos vs BC Efes Pilsen (Game 3) 14.04.2005 / 18:10*

Broadcast Schedule : 

SUPERSPORT GREECE
SKY TÜRKEY
CANAL + POLAND
TV SPORT ROMANIA
CANAL + DEPORTE 2 SPAIN
VIASAT
RTR SPORTS
SPORT +
RTS
PBS BOSNIA
RTK
NBA TV


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## spongyfungy (Oct 22, 2003)

*Re: BC Panathinaikos vs BC Efes Pilsen (Game 3) 14.04.2005 / 18:10*

With a three-point shooting show that establishes major leads, Panathinaikos became the last team to clinch a Euroleague Final Four berth by beating Efes Pilsen 84-76 in front of a sellout crowd of 18,000 in Athens, Greece on Thursday night in the third and last game of their quarterfinals playoff. Panathinaikos had a heavy homecourt avdantage as one of the biggest crowds ever in European basketball history, 18,000 fans, filled sold-out OAKA Olympic Stadium. Panathinaikos won the best-of-three series 2-1 and advances to face defending champion Maccabi Tel Aviv in the semifinals on Friday, May 6 in Moscow. With the packed arena cheering each one, the Greens made 12 of 16 triples over 25 minutes starting midway through the first quarter to take a 25-point lead near the end of the third. Efes, however, rallied back to within 76-71 with just over a minute left before Panathinaikos held on for the victory. Four different Panathinaikos drilled 2 or more triples, including Jaka Lakovic, who led the winners with 22 points, and scored 6 in the final 90 seconds to hold off Efes. Ibrahim Kutluay added 15 and Fragiskos Alvertis 11 for Panathinaikos. Henry Domercant led Efes Pilsen with 17 points, Dusan Kecman added 15 and Will Solomon had 12 for the guests.

http://www.euroleague.net/reports/report.jsp?temporada=E04&jornada=23&partido=225


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