The newcomers breathed life into the PAOK!
The “two-headed man of the north” returned to victory, prevailing 67-54 of Apollo in Patras, for the 6th matchday of the Stoiximan Basket League.
A great protagonist for the Thessaloniki team was Justin Alston, who had a double-double in his debut with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Good look too from the other…new, Kendall Smithwith 10 points, with PAOK now climbing to 3-3.
On the other hand, with the… left, he started on Apollo’s bench Costas Delegoswith the Patrines having fallen to 1-5. For them, he stood out Chad Brown with 11 points and 13 rebounds.
The match
PAOK came in stronger, escaping to +7 (4-11) in the first four minutes. Then, the tempo of the match picked up, as Apollon improved offensively, with the “two-headed team of the north” steadily maintaining its distance (12-17), until the 8th minute. In the last two minutes and with a mini outburst by Brown, the Patrinos were reduced to a point (16-17) at the end of the first period.
With Alston and Harrison, PAOK started with a 7-0 run in the second quarter, for +8 (16-24), at 12′. The home team’s answer came from Skordilis, who reduced (22-26) temporarily, as with Tsairelis as the protagonist, the Thessalonians escaped to +9 (23-32), in the 19th minute. The only thing that changed by the end of the half was Washington’s basket and foul, which made it 26-32.
With a three-pointer by Beliauskas at the beginning of the second half, PAOK again went to +9 (26-35). However, the reaction of the Patrinas was immediate, as they initially reduced to -3 (34-37), while Saloustros and Mouratos brought the match to a draw (42-42), in the 28th minute. Smith’s three-pointer gave the visitors a breather, who closed the third period at +3 (44-47).
Excellent start from PAOK in the fourth period with Alston and Smith paving the way for the +10 (50-60) until the 35th minute. In the last minutes, the “two-headed man of the north” managed well and took the victory with the final 54-67.
The quarters: 16-17, 26-32, 44-47, 54-67
See the match statistics here
Source: Sport Fm
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