On Sunday: Maccabi duels with Panathinaikos in Rhodes
The yellows will once again test themselves against the Greeks in preseason play (10AM ET)
16/09/2023
HOME·News Archive· On Sunday: Maccabi duels with Panathinaikos in Rhodes
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv will face Panathinaikos on Sunday (5PM Israel Time, 10AM ET), as part of the Nick Galis Tournament in Rhodes, Greece. The yellow-and-blue squad will want to test themselves against the new-faced Greeks in their third practice game of the summer.
Maccabi arrives at this game after beating Fenerbahce 82:78 on Friday. Last week, the Israeli champs crushed Hapoel Holon 89:68 in its first scrimmage.
Panathinaikos is one of the most interesting rivals in the EuroLeague, as a result of a complete overhaul in the greens' squad. Pao put two-time EuroLeague champion Ergin Ataman at the helm and granted him a plethora of big names, including Kostas Sloukas, Mathias Lessort, Juancho Hernangomez and Luca Vildoza.
Preseason: Maccabi falls to Panathinaikos in Rhodes
The yellows struggled to find their groove and dropped their first practice game this summer. Brown scored 14 points, Rivero chipped in 13
17/09/2023
HOME·News Archive· Preseason: Maccabi falls to Panathinaikos in Rhodes
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv dropped its first game of the season, losing 77:89 to Panathinaikos in the conclusion of the Nick Galis Tournament in Rhodes, Greece. The yellows suffered from understandable mistakes in their third preseason game, and will try to fix them until next weekend, when they will participate in another tournament in Cyprus.
It was a typical preseason affair, full of missteps and and signs of rust. The Israeli champs struggled from beyond the arc all game long, and had a hard time stopping former yellow Mathias Lessort.
Yet even in this setting, Maccabi showed their fighting spirit by cutting a 12-point deficit to 7 in the final frame, led by Lorenzo Brown. But it proved to be too little, too late, and Juancho Hernangomez iced the game late.
Brown was Maccabi’s leading scorer with 14 points, with Jasiel Rivero close behind with 13.
"It was a good tournament for us", concluded head coach Oded Kattash, "Today we didn't play well, we lacked focus on both sides of the court. But this is why these games are so important - we learn from them".