The Game of week 23:
Panathinaikos vs Zalgiris
OAKA was roaring, full of emotion and excitement, and Panathinaikos and Zalgiris gave it a game worthy of that stage.
The first big moment came immediately. Mathias Lessort returned to the competition, Panathinaikos went to him on the very first possession, and he delivered with a bucket. That set the tone in the building, but early on the tactical story leaned in a different direction.
Zalgiris opened by “weakening” ball screens, especially against Kendrick Nunn, pushing him toward his right hand and trying to make every touch a little less comfortable. Still, the early spotlight belonged to the battle inside between Lessort and Moses Wright. That clash had real edge from the jump.
Despite committing four turnovers in the opening quarter, Zalgiris managed to stay in front, and the reason was simple. They crushed the offensive glass, pulling down five offensive rebounds and creating extra possessions. Panathinaikos needed a late push to stay close, and T.J. Shorts provided it with his ability to attack the paint. By the end of the first, the Greens were down only three.
Zalgiris adjusted again to open the second quarter. They began switching all ball screens not involving Nunn, which stalled Panathinaikos and forced the offense into late clock situations. On the other end, they kept finding success attacking the hedge.
Panathinaikos looked for counters. They started posting up Grant when Sylvain Francisco was the defender, but the real momentum swing came from Cedi Osman. He scored five straight to tie the game and forced a Zalgiris timeout. Then, right out of the break, he struck again, capitalizing on another turnover.
Late in the half, the Greek defense ratcheted up. Zalgiris’ shooting dried up and the Lithuanians scored only four points in the final five minutes, despite generating some quality looks. The turnover issues also kept piling up, with four more in the second quarter. That helped Panathinaikos rack up six steals in the half and turn them into easy runouts.
By halftime, the Greens had flipped the game and led 44 40.
The second half started with Zalgiris leaning heavily into Spain pick and roll, both from the middle and on the side, and they found real success with it. But the transition issues remained. Cedi Osman kept hurting them in the open floor, and after a Nunn scoop layup the Panathinaikos lead grew to nine.
Zalgiris answered like good teams do. An 8 0 run, sparked by a Brazdeikis three and five quick points from Francisco, brought them right back into it.
Ataman went back to the bench and found the stabilizer in Shorts. His ability to touch the paint stopped the bleeding and helped ignite an 8 0 run for Panathinaikos before a late Zalgiris basket trimmed the deficit to six entering the fourth.
Then came the decisive push.
Panathinaikos opened the final quarter on an 8 2 run, stretching the lead to 12 and forcing Tomas Masiulis to call timeout. It worked, at least briefly. Moses Wright converted a 2 plus 1, then Francisco drilled a three within the next minute, giving Zalgiris a jolt.
And then Lessort took over the emotional center of the game.
Back to back impact plays, first a dunk, then a charge, completely flipped the momentum again. Moments later, Osman buried a three that pushed Panathinaikos to its biggest lead of the night at 14. That sequence felt like the game inhaling and exhaling all at once.
Zalgiris kept swinging. They made another push and got within three, but they could never fully break through. Panathinaikos held on for a 92 88 win.
Cedi Osman and Kendrick Nunn combined for 46 points and carried much of the scoring load. For Zalgiris, Francisco was the engine with 23 points, while three other teammates also reached double figures.
In a game full of tactical tweaks, momentum swings and playoff level tension, Panathinaikos found just enough answers, and in OAKA, that was enough.
Key Performances of the Past Week:
Codi Miller-McIntyre vs Fenerbahçe
In one of the games of the week, Codi Miller-McIntyre stole the show, and he did it without needing a huge scoring night.
This was not about gaudy point totals or a heater from deep. This was about control. Full game control.
The Crvena Zvezda guard finished with a 10 point, 12 assist double double and added eight rebounds, ending just two boards short of a triple double. It was the kind of stat line that tells you he was involved in everything, and the film backs it up.
Miller McIntyre caused problems all night by getting downhill into the teeth of Fenerbahçe’s defense. Once he cracked the first layer, the real damage began. He kept making the right read, over and over, putting teammates in position to finish plays and forcing the defense to stay uncomfortable for long stretches.
That is what made the performance stand out. He was not just creating offense. He was dictating the shape of the game.
And on defense, he looked like himself. Constant pressure on the ball. Comfortable switching onto bigger players. Competitive enough to hold his own in those matchups and keep the possession alive.
There are nights when the headline belongs to the scorer who catches fire. Then there are nights like this, when the best player on the floor is the one bending every possession to his will.
Against Fenerbahçe, Codi Miller McIntyre proved you do not need a 25 point explosion to own the spotlight. Sometimes it is enough to make the defense sweat on every trip and put your teammates exactly where they need to be.
Standings Watch:
This was one of those EuroLeague rounds where the standings did not dramatically shift, but the tension somehow still rose.
The headline is the congestion around the Play In line. Every team currently sitting in Play In position is now tied at 17 14. That is the kind of traffic jam that turns every remaining game into a pressure cooker. One bad night can send you tumbling. One good week can change everything.
Lurking right behind that pack are Dubai and Milano, both just one win back. That detail matters. It means the group above them is not just fighting each other, it is also looking over its shoulder every single night.
The biggest loser of the week was Maccabi.
They now sit three wins behind the Play In spots, and it gets worse when you consider there are also two teams between them and the line. In a race this crowded, that kind of gap can feel bigger than the raw number suggests. It is not just about making up ground, it is about leaping multiple teams while hoping several results break your way.
So the obvious question hangs there now.
Was this the week Maccabi’s postseason hopes effectively ended?
Maybe not mathematically. But in a standings race this compressed, it is starting to feel very close.
Games to Watch Week 24:
Zalgiris vs Real Madrid
Is everyone ready for round two between Zalgiris and Real Madrid?
The first meeting came down to the final breath and ended with just a one point margin, so the sequel already has a built in hook. And this one has all the ingredients to deliver again.
For the season, Zalgiris and Real Madrid have been the second and third best offenses in the competition. That alone tells you what kind of ceiling this matchup has. Two elite attacks, plenty of creators, and multiple ways to stress a defense.
But there is an important split hanging over Real Madrid here.
Away from home, their offensive efficiency drops significantly, sliding from 120.8 ORTG to 113.2 ORTG. That dip goes a long way toward explaining the Blancos’ road issues and their 5 10 record in those games. The offense still has talent, but it has not traveled with the same force.
That is where Zalgiris becomes especially interesting.
Their guards are the ones who control the shape of the game, and they love to live in the pick and roll. Expect them to bring Edy Tavares into as many actions as possible, probing for openings and trying to use Moses Wright as a roller to put pressure on the defense. If Zalgiris can consistently force Tavares into difficult reads, that could tilt long stretches of the game.
On the Real side, the matchup pressure comes from different places.
Mario Hezonja and Trey Lyles are the kind of players who walk onto the floor as mismatches. Size, skill, shotmaking, versatility. Against almost any opponent, they can force a defense into uncomfortable decisions, and Zalgiris is no exception. If Real is going to steady itself on the road, those two feel like obvious pressure points.
So yes, this has all the signs of another tight one.
Two elite offenses. One team trying to weaponize its guards and pick and roll game. Another bringing oversized shot creators who can bend the floor in their own way. If the first meeting was any indication, expect another exciting game that stays close deep into the fourth.
What’s at Stake:
Should the sirens start to play in Barcelona?
The Catalans have now dropped four straight, and the surprising part is where the problem is showing up. Contrary to what many would expect, this is not really about the defense. The bigger issue has been on the offensive side of the ball.
For the season, Barcelona has posted a 117.7 ORTG, a strong mark that reflects the talent and firepower in this roster. But over the last four games, they have not reached that number once. In fact, they have gone above 111 ORTG only a single time in that stretch.
That is not just a cold patch. That is a real offensive slowdown.
The shooting numbers from deep help explain why. Barcelona has gone just 27 for 105 from three in those four games, a brutal 25.8 percent. When a team built to create advantages and space the floor goes that cold, everything starts to look harder. Driving lanes tighten. Rotations arrive sooner. Possessions become more fragile.
And that is what makes this stretch so fascinating.
Because when a team with this much talent starts sputtering offensively, the question is not only about the percentages. It is about the response. What gets simplified? What gets emphasized? Which players are put in more advantageous spots? How much of this is just shooting variance, and how much is something deeper?
That brings it back to the biggest question.
What will Xavi Pascual do to solve it?
Barcelona still has the talent to snap out of this quickly. But four straight losses and an offense that suddenly looks stuck is enough to make the alarms at least start warming up.
Biggest News Around EuroLeague
Life in Monaco has not been easy lately, and the hits just keep coming.
The latest blow is a significant one. Mike James has picked up a hamstring injury and is expected to be sidelined for the next two to three weeks, a tough loss for a team that has already been navigating turbulence.
And the context matters here.
Monaco went into the game against Olympiacos with just a nine man rotation. One of those nine was the EuroLeague’s all time leading scorer, and even with that thin margin, the Monegasques found a way to win. They currently have only 11 players registered in the EuroLeague, which makes every absence feel heavier and every rotation decision tighter.
That is what makes the James injury more than just a headline. It is not only about losing a star. It is about losing a star on a roster that already feels stretched to its limits.
This is where Monaco’s season keeps getting tested. Depth has already been a talking point. Availability has already been an issue. Now the team has to survive another stretch without one of its central engines.
So the question becomes the obvious one.
How will the Monegasques handle yet another dose of adversity?
Given everything around this team lately, the answer may say a lot about where this season is really headed.
This article was written by the European Hoops team: Tiago Cordeiro, João Caeiro and André Lemos. Make sure you give us a follow on Twitter at @EthosEuroleague!
