The guard took over for the Reds in the second half
Williams-Goss did it on both ends as Olympiacos flipped the script at Partizan
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Regular Season
Round 32 of 34
Group Regular Season
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Despite starting the game slow and trailing by 13 points coming into the fourth quarter, Olympiacos Piraeus found inspiration in Nigel Williams-Goss, who made the difference and led his team to a 69-74 victory at Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade on Thursday night.
The Reds’ starters struggled in the first quarter, with Partizan dominating the paint and outrebounding the visitors 13-3 in the first 10 minutes. The hosts led 22-17 after 10 minutes, with Williams-Goss scoring the final basket of the opening period before going from strength to strength in the remainder of the game, starting in the second quarter.
The Olympiacos guard recorded 3 steals in a space of 3 minutes and allowed his team to score in transition, with the guests trimming the deficit to 25-23. Partizan bounced back and secured a 40-32 cushion at halftime, but Williams-Goss had already managed to keep a struggling Olympiacos in the game.
“Partizan started the game very well, but in the second quarter the guys who came from the bench did an amazing job and put us back into the game,” Olympiacos captain Kostas Papanikolaou admitted afterward.
The Serbian side retained control of the game in the third period, but Williams-Goss, who finished the first half with a team-high 7 points, came to the fore again in the last 10 minutes. Partizan took a 59-46 lead into the fourth quarter, but the 29-year-old set the tone on defense and contributed the most during Olympiacos’s 0-12 run.
Williams-Goss and his fourth-quarter heroics
After netting a tough triple to make it 59-55, Williams-Goss registered his fourth steal of the night and found Thomas Walkup, who completed a three-point play to cut the difference to 59-58. The game turned into a back-and-forth affair, with Williams-Goss netting one from inside the arc (61-60) with 5:00 left on the clock.
His fifth steal of the game shortly after led to a Papanikolaou bucket in transition (61-64), before finding Moustapha Fall with a smart dish for a slam (69-71). Most importantly, the Olympiacos guard was called to finish the game off from the line with 13 seconds remaining and he duly delivered by hitting both free throws to make it a two-possession affair (69-73).
Williams-Goss pulled off a complete performance, ending the game with season highs of 17 points and 5 steals. He also recorded 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 drawn fouls for a PIR of 19. Having struggled with an injury over the last month, the Olympiacos guard stepped up big against his former team and led the Reds to a statement victory that keeps them in contention for home-court advantage in the postseason.
Olympiacos will return to Belgrade next week as it will face Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade on Thursday night. Williams-Goss led the way against Partizan, and Olympiacos will now push for back-to-back wins in the Serbian capital.