Peyton Siva debuts, Stefan Jovic returns in Panathinaikos' easy evening vs. Apollon / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: Vangelis Stolis Credit Vangelis Stolis

Stefan Jovic returned to action after the Greek Cup final ten weeks ago, Peyton Siva made his Greek League debut and Panathinaikos OPAP Athens (21-2) held off Apollon Patras (7-15) 78-68 (27-22, 17-14, 26-8, 8-24), largely thanks to their great third quarter.

Free throws this season

80%12,7Points made:12,7Accuracy:80,3%Place in standings:8Record max:25Record min:4Most made FTs:Daryl MaconTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

Siva went scoreless on 0/6 from the field in 16 minutes, while Jovic scored 2 points in 12 minutes of playing time.

The hosts played without team captain Ioannis Papapetrou, who's down with the flu, and Nemanja Nedovic, who's still recovering from injury but is soon expected to return.

The Greens started the game with a clear offensive-minded orientation, scoring 27 points in the first quarter, with Daryl Macon pouring 18 points overall in the first half. However, the guests were able to stay close up until the start of the third quarter.

Credit Vangelis Stolis

That's when Nikos Diplaros scored two consecutive three-point shots to make it 46-42. But Apollon couldn't make it any more of a competitive game, as PAO went on a huge 24-0 run that handed them the win. In the first round, the team coached by Dimitris Priftis needed a 0-18 run to break the game open and snatch an impressive 90-48 win.

This time, it wasn't Siva and Jovic, but Leonidas Kaselakis and Okaro White who made the difference for Giorgos Vovoras' squad.

After a storming 26-8 third quarter, the Greens relaxed in the fourth, allowing the Patras team a partial score of 8-24, with 22-year-old Nikos Tsiakmas stealing the show. Tsiakmas led Apollon in scoring with 16 points, while Diplaros added 14.

For PAO, Daryl Macon and Okaro White split halves. The American guard put up 18 and the former UNICS Kazan forward another 16.

Panathinaikos: Daryl Macon 18 (5/9 FG, 4/4 3PT SHOTS, 4/4 FT, 4 AST), Okaro White 16 (5/9 FG, 3/3 FT, 8 REB), Leonidas Kaselakis 10 (3 REB, 3 AST), Giorgos Papagiannis 8.

Apollon Patras: Nikos Tsiakmas 16 (6/7 FG, 2/2 FT), Nikos Diplaros 14 (4/7 FG, 2/2 FT, 4 AST), De'jon Davis 12 (10 REB).

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