No matter their current form or league standing, when Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv faces Panathinaikos, expect a true battle between two European empires. On Friday (9 pm Israel time, 2 pm EST), the historic rivals will meet once again, this time at the noisy OAKA, in the Euroleague's round 19.
Maccabi arrives after a convincing home win against Partizan Belgrade, with a 10:8 record and a temporary place inside the top 8. The Greek hosts however are not in a good shape lately. They have lost six straight including a tough beat down in the Derby against Olympiacos.
"It is true that Panathinakos's latest results weren't positive, but they played well and deserved to get more from the games they lost", said Oded Kattash ahead of the game against the team he played for and coached in the past.
"It is never easy playing at OAKA, no matter the situation Panathinaikos is in, so going there thinking that their results give us any advantage would be a big mistake. We will need to stay super focused and aggressive to get this win"
"Panathinaikos plays good basketball," said Wade Baldwin. "Despite their losing streak, this is a tough team with a good squad and it is never easy to play in their home court. We need to come prepared".
Maccabi arrives after a convincing home win against Partizan Belgrade, with a 10:8 record and a temporary place inside the top 8. The Greek hosts however are not in a good shape lately. They have lost six straight including a tough beat down in the Derby against Olympiacos.
"It is true that Panathinakos's latest results weren't positive, but they played well and deserved to get more from the games they lost", said Oded Kattash ahead of the game against the team he played for and coached in the past.
"It is never easy playing at OAKA, no matter the situation Panathinaikos is in, so going there thinking that their results give us any advantage would be a big mistake. We will need to stay super focused and aggressive to get this win"
"Panathinaikos plays good basketball," said Wade Baldwin. "Despite their losing streak, this is a tough team with a good squad and it is never easy to play in their home court. We need to come prepared".