Fenerbahce upset European champs, set the final with Monaco

AMMAN — In the first semifinal of this year's Final Four in Abu Dhabi, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul beat Panathinaikos Athens 82-76 to reach the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Championship final.

The Turkish squad kept the reigning European champion at bay for 38 minutes, controlled the rebound and neutralised a veteran Greek point guard Kostas Sloukas. A thirty- five- year -old scored only two points, had three assists and two turnovers for almost 16 minutes.

In the first half, Fener lead by double digits but by the end of the second quarter Panathinaikos came close 38-35. The seventh time European champions from Athens almost equalised when they came to a one -point deficit in the third quarter, but the Turkish power house stayed strong in the fourth and sealed the win.

Devon Hall led the way with 18 points, with Tarik Biberovic netting 15, Errick McCollum scoring 13 and Wade Baldwin contributing 10.  Two Hall's three pointers in the final finish of the match decided the outcome of the opening semifinal. 

Cedi Osman kept Panathinaikos in the game with 22 points, while the shooting guard Kendrick Nunn added 19 but was fouled out midway through the fourth quarter, while Jerian Grant scored 15.

Osman struck the first blow with a steal and slam, but Fenerbahce raced ahead as Hall scored twice, with Marko Guduric also netting from deep in a 10-0 run for a 13-5 lead.  After that series Fenerbahce controlled scoring while PAO tried to catch up.

Fener's sharpshooter Hayes-Davis rattled home a three before a centre Mathias Lessort threw down a dunk, but Fener stayed in control with two triples from Biberovic, 31-18. Inside scores from Nunn and Omer Yurtseven reduced the gap, but Dyshawn Pierre and Hall restored a double-digit lead, 35-23. 

Panathinaikos'  coach Ergin Ataman pulled out his joker, a French centre Mathias Lessort, who was one of the key players last year when PAO beat Real Madrid in the EuroLeague final, but after a long absence due to an injury, Lessort proved to be unable to bother pivots of the Turkish side.

Nunn kept forcing a three-point play but McCollum answered from deep for a 45-40 lead. Nunn’s floater was equalled by Nicollo Melli’s dunk, and McCollum netted 6 points straight to keep the Turkish team ahead before Baldwin added a dunk, and it was 55-48 after three quarters.

The Italian power forward Melli’s three-pointer made it a double-digit lead, but Osman didn't give up and hit back with five straight points, making it 59-53. Baldwin’s jumper was bettered by another Osman three, but Hall also struck from deep while Nunn fouled out as Fener led 65-56. It proved to be the crucial difference, although Grant and Osman made it 67-62 with three minutes remaining. 

Hall settled Fener with his fourth triple, but Osman immediately returned a three-pointer, giving the Greek side some hope.

McCollum’s sidestep three was the final nail in the coffin, making it 73:66 and Biberovic later sealed a win with another triple from an open shot.

In the second semifinal, Monaco clinched its first EuroLeague final, while rookie coach Vasilis Spanoulis  took his team one step further. 

On the other hand, Olympiakos did not capitalise from the first position in the regular season and failed to reach the final.

The most efficient Monaco's players were Alpha Dialo with 22 points and six rebounds, Mike James with17 points, had seven rebounds and seven assists, Jarom Blossomgame added 12 points, while Mam Jaite scored 11.

The best scorer of the game was Evan Fournier with 31 points, Nigel Williams scored 12, and the Serbian centre Nikola Milutinov added only eight points. The Bulgarian forward Sasa Vezenkov underperformed with seven points and eight rebounds.

Both teams showed a tense beginning of the match but Olympiakos broke the ice with the French International Fournier. 

From Monaco's side, the forward Dialo and the shooting guard James took responsibility, scoring baskets and encouraging teammates.

The half time finished with Monaco's lead 35:32, but the key series of 7:0 happened in the third quarter when Monaco went up to 55:42.

In the final quarter Monaco slowed down the pace, rebuffed attempts from the Greek side to catch up and confidently closed the semifinal.