White, Papapetrou, Macon shine as Panathinaikos sentence Iraklis to relegation / News - Basketnews.com

Credit BasketNews/D.Repečka

Panathinaikos OPAP Athens (22-2) easily overcame Iraklis (6-18) 81-59 (20-19, 21-22, 18-9, 22-9) on the road, sending their opponent to the Greek second division.

Points this season

46%74,4Points made:74,4Accuracy:45,7%Place in standings:13Record max:95Record min:48Best scorer:Nemanja NedovicTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

Ioannis Papapetrou, Daryl Macon and Okaro White scored 21 points apiece for the winning side that had already secured the second place in the regular season. Panathinaikos only needed a decent second half to outscore Iraklis 40-18 and get another win.

On the other hand, for the team from Thessaloniki, that was the end of the road. Iraklis were promoted to the Basket League in 2019, but three years later, they are back to the second division by ending up in 13th place (last).

Mike Henry was the main reason for Iraklis staying in the game during the first half. The American guard scored 21 points (more than half of his team's total tally) and grabbed 8 rebounds in only 14 minutes of action. Unfortunately for his side, he only scored 3 points in the second part, when none of his teammates was able to carry the scoring torch.

At the same time, PAO were get nothing from their two point guards. For the second straight game, Peyton Siva and Stefan Jovic couldn't provide the necessary scoring push in a closed contest. Siva went scoreless on 0/3 from the field, while Jovic provided only 6 rebounds and 3 assists.

Daryl Macon and Okaro White combined for 17 points overall, which were not enough for the Greens to maintain the lead at half-time. Giorgos Vovoras' men scored only four points in the last three minutes of the first part, allowing the hosts to tie the contest at 41 apiece.

Papapetrou and Papagiannis helped PAO on the offensive end (53-47), as Iraklis kept doing battle with only eight players available. Seven consecutive points from Okaro White made the difference for the Greens (59-50) heading into the fourth quarter.

It was all downhill from there for the hosts, as the reigning Greek champs cruised to victory off the back of a partial score 9-22 in the last quarter.

Panathinaikos: Ioannis Papapetrou 21 (8/14 FG, 1/2 FT), Okaro White 21 (7/12 FG, 6/6 FT, 7 REB), Giorgos Papagiannis 8 (12 REB, 2 BS), Howard Sant-Roos 6 (1/5 FG, 6 AST, 3 TO).

Iraklis: Mike Henry 24 (10/20 FG, 3/3 FT, 9 REB, 7 TO), Brandon Garrett 12 (5/10 FG, 2/5 FT, 10 REB), Jamar Abraams 9, Daryl Macon 21 (7/12 FG, 4/5 FT, 5 AST, 3 TO).

Like what we are doing? Support us by becoming BN+ member.