The anchor in the middle for Panathinaikos came through in the end after suffering a miserable night of free-throw shooting.
Lessort found redemption at the end of Game 5
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It's fair to say that Mathias Lessort endured a mixed night as Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens powered past Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, 81-72, to seal a Final Four berth in Tuesday's electrifying playoffs decider.
First, the good. The Greek team's big man dominated the glass, grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds including 6 at the offensive end, matching the club record in the playoffs. That played a major role in allowing Panathinaikos to win the physical battle by outrebounding Maccabi 41-33 and 19-13 in offensive boards, another Panathinaikos playoff record, against an opponent that is usually a specialist in that aspect of the game.
Lessort's physical prowess was also evident in the fact that Maccabi could only attempt to contain him by fouling him 8 times. But that just leads us to the bad side – historically bad, in fact – of Lessort's performance: free throw shooting.
The French center could only make 3 of his 14 shots from the foul line, meaning that he set a new EuroLeague playoffs record for missed free throws. Dejan Tomasevic previously held that dishonor, missing 9 free throws when he went 8-of-17 from the line for Buducnost in a loss at Real Madrid way back in 2001.
Lessort's total of 11 free throw misses was also only 1 off the all-time competition record for any stage of the season, set by Sofo Schortsanitis as he went 5-of-17 for Olympiacos against Efes in 2009.
At least Lessort can say he was in auspicious company as both Tomasevic and Schortsanitis went on to become EuroLeague champions in their careers.
From low point to redemption
In the first 5 minutes of the third quarter, Lessort missed on 6 consecutive free throw attempts, delivering a variety of misfires short, long and wide.
Those misses might have proved very costly, too, because they prevented Panathinaikos from creeping into a sustainable advantage, instead allowing Maccabi to stay right in the game during an intense third frame that featured seven lead changes and five ties. Indeed, Maccabi was ahead 49-53 with 3:30 left in that third quarter.
In the end, though, Lessort could breathe a big sigh of relief that his free throw mishaps didn't prove particularly important. Panathinaikos dominated the fourth quarter to put the outcome beyond doubt while he found redemption by playing a significant part in that surge. His consecutive baskets with less than 3 minutes remaining stretched a nervous 73-67 lead into a commanding double-digit advantage that sealed the deal and a Panathinaikos return to the Final Four after 12 years.
What's more, Lessort even broke his string of missed free throws, a moment that was met by a huge roar of approval from the frenzied Panathinaikos fans, whose support for their star center never wavered during his troubles from the line.
One thing is for sure, though. Maccabi's strategy of putting Lessort on the line rather than see him collect his trademark spectacular dunks won't be ignored by any of Panathinaikos's Final Four opponents in Berlin.
Whether it's through technical corrections or mental cleansing, Lessort has a fortnight now to work on his deficiencies from the line. Next time, on the Final Four stage, the pressure will become even more intense.