The Euroleague playoffs are upon us and Eurohoops is going back in time to rank the 10+1 series that remain etched in our memory

Top 10+1 unforgettable EuroLeague Playoffs series

The regular season in the EuroLeague is great, but the playoffs are greater! This is where the real season starts and history is made.

From 2001 onwards, when the Euroleague entered its modern era, several format changes happened, however, the playoffs were always special.

Eurohoops is here to rank the top 10 playoff series in the EuroLeague and we expect this year to be even bigger and better!

[MORE...](https://www.eurohoops.net/en/trademarks/1662961/top-101-unforgettable-euroleague-playoffs-series/)

Real Madrid looked every inch a reigning champion as it started the playoffs with a bang, comfortably downing Spanish rival Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 90-74 at WiZink Center on Tuesday night.

Focused Real delivered a statement-making win over Baskonia 

Real Madrid looked every inch a reigning champion as it started the playoffs with a bang, comfortably downing Spanish rival Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz 90-74 at WiZink Center on Tuesday night.

Coach Chus Mateo’s squad raced into an early 5-0 lead and never looked back, producing a focused and purposeful performance at both ends of the floor to dominate the Basque visitors from start to finish.

It was a demonstration of perfect balance from Los Blancos, who converted 20 of their 34 two-point attempts (58.8%) and a solid 14-of-33 three-pointers (42.4%), achieved with great efficiency as 21 assists were paired by just 7 turnovers.

Real also did a great job defensively, restricting a dangerous Baskonia offense to nearly 10 points below its regular season average partly thanks to 9 steals, all forming part of a total team effort as 11 different players spent at least 10 minutes on the floor.

The reigning champ’s no-nonsense approach was echoed off the court after the game, as leading scorer Dzanan Musa – who scored 16 points on 6-of-9 field goal conversions – admitted his team was in a serious mood for this playoff opener.

Real Madrid forward Dzanan Musa spoke to EuroLeague TV after his team's Game 1 win against Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs.

Dzanan Musa, Real Madrid: 'We tried to make a statement'

“We came in very hard today," said the Bosnian shooter. “We tried to make a statement in the first game. It’s important for us that we got this first home win.”

However, Musa was clearly in no mood to start celebrating too much, emphasizing that much more work remains to be done – starting with Game 2 on Thursday.

“Baskonia is a great team but we’re going to keep pushing and try to make this 2-0,” added Musa.

”We’ve been in this situation so many times. We have experience of playing these big games and we'll continue to try to push it. Every game is important. We don’t look forward to what's going to happen in ten days. We're looking forward to Thursday and we’re trying to make it 2-0.”

The same message was delivered by Coach Mateo, who restricted his happiness with his team’s display to a snappy initial assessment, saying: “We did a good job. We played with energy and were very active until the end.”

Real Madrid head coach Chus Mateo spoke to EuroLeague TV after his team's Game 1 win against Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs.

Chus Mateo, Real Madrid: 'This is just one victory'

But Mateo knows that going ahead 1-0 in the playoffs is by no means the end of his team’s ambitions for the season, adding: “This is just one victory, and we have to keep working.

“Baskonia is a very tough team. They are very good players and they’ve got character. They can come back so the second game will be totally different. We have to be aware of this and we have to be ready. It’s the beginning of the playoffs and we know how are the playoffs.”

Indeed, with a roster containing no less than 11 players with more than 100 EuroLeague appearances, no other team in Europe has more experience of what it takes to win.

And judging by the statements made by Real on Tuesday – both on and off the court – the kings of Europe will not give up their crown without a fight.

 

Game News

The defending champs opened their best-of-five series with a 90-74 victory

Real Madrid v Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (2024-04-23T19:00:00.000Z)

Bonzie Colson and Lorenzo Brown came up big for Maccabi Tel Aviv BC following Wade Baldwin's fourth-quarter injury against Panathinaikos BC.

Colson, Brown made up for Baldwin injury late at Panathinaikos

Sometimes in the playoffs, you have to weather multiple storms before having a chance to snatch glory from the jaws of defeat. That was certainly the case for Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv in [Game 1 of its series against Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/maccabi-steals-game-1-at-panathinaikos-87-91/) on Tuesday night.

With Maccabi trailing by 12 points, 56-44, a couple of minutes into the third quarter, the OAKA crowd was going wild. Many teams would have wavered under that sort of pressure, but not Oded Kattash’s men.

Maccabi head coach Oded Kattash talked after his team's Game 1 road win in the playoffs against Panathinaikos.

Oded Kattash: 'We showed character again'

Even late in the third, two big blocks – first by [Panagiotis Kalaitzakis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/panagiotis-kalaitzakis/profile/011209/) and then by [Kostas Antetokounmpo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kostas-antetokounmpo/011221/) – saw the roof come off OAKA, such was the noise the Panathinaikos fans were creating. That said, Maccabi had managed to reduce the deficit to seven points, 70-63, thanks in part to 5 points from guard [Lorenzo Brown](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/lorenzo-brown/009622/) midway through the period.

Fellow backcourt star [Wade Baldwin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/wade-baldwin-iv/009863/) had posted 8 points and 6 assists through the first 30 minutes, but he knew he had to do more in the fourth – and so he did. The 28-year-old got out quickly in transition to score a layup with the first make of the fourth, cutting the gap to 70-65, and then went a perfect 3 for 3 from the line after being fouled on a three-point attempt by [Kostas Sloukas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kostas-sloukas/001926/), making it 70-68.

Baldwin was involved once more shortly after, finding [Bonzie Colson](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/bonzie-colson/009783/) for a three-pointer as Maccabi tied things up at 71-71. Panathinaikos big man [Mathias Lessort](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/mathias-lessort/003842/) put his team back in front with a score inside, but Baldwin hit back by racing to the cup and scoring a layup to set a 73-73 score. However, he came up limping and immediately held the back of his hamstring. Having been involved in all 10 of Maccabi’s fourth-quarter points to that point, it seemed as though Maccabi’s hopes of a road win were going to be dashed.

### Responding to adversity

But Brown and Colson had other ideas. The Maccabi guard took over the ball handling duties and dictated the offense like an experienced captain steering a ship through rough waters, while the 28-year-old Colson raised his game to an All-EuroLeague level once Baldwin went down. When Colson and Brown hit a three-pointer apiece in quick succession, Maccabi held a 77-81 lead having not led since early in the second quarter.

Bonzie Colson and Lorenzo Brown both came up big for Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv in the fourth quarter of its Game 1 victory at Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens.

Colson, Brown big plays in fourth quarter

Colson added another score and a couple of free throws to his tally, then Brown poured cold water on Panathinaikos’s hopes of a late comeback by scoring a layup to put the visitors 87-89 ahead with 35 seconds left. There was one last chance for Panathinaikos to either win the game or send it to overtime, but Sloukas turned the ball over. Colson and Brown managed to wind down the clock before finding [Josh Nebo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/josh-nebo/011199/), who went on to make both of his free throws to effectively wrap up the win.

“\[The key was\] just sticking with what we do: playing good defense, hitting big shots when we need to, and staying together,” Colson said afterward. “We showed our resilience today and we’ve just to keep it up.”

Maccabi has already announced that Baldwin is doubtful for Game 2 with a sore hamstring, but following Brown and Colson’s late-game heroics, it knows it already has the road win it needs. 

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="iw" dir="rtl">עדכון: ווייד בולדווין סובל מרגישות בשריר הירך האחורי, בספק למשחק הבא <a href="https://t.co/gLZmwQHqGV">pic.twitter.com/gLZmwQHqGV</a></p>&mdash; Maccabi Tel Aviv BC 🇮🇱​ (@MaccabiTLVBC) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaccabiTLVBC/status/1782867663212924970?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Colson and Brown ended up leading Maccabi by scoring 18 and 16 points, respectively, while Baldwin was close behind with 15. You can be assured that Maccabi will wrap Baldwin in cotton wool ahead of Thursday’s rematch as it looks to get its three stars on the floor together once again.

“Big plays by big players,” head coach Oded Kattash said of Colson and Brown. Following a night in which Maccabi had to deal with many stormy moments, it was finally able to come out the other side and see the sunshine. Now, just two wins stand between Maccabi and a place in the Final Four.

Lorenzo Brown of Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv is guarded by Jerian Grant of Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens in Game 1 of their series in the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs.

Maccabi managed to secure a crucial Game 1 victory on the road

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens v Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (2024-04-23T17:30:00.000Z)

The visitors converted just 12 of 41 shots from downtown in Game 1

Baskonia failed with failed three-point barrage

Less than three weeks after winning at Real Madrid in Round 33 of the regular season, Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz was put firmly back in its place as the reigning champion powered to a 90-74 home triumph on Tuesday in the playoffs opener. 

The strategy employed by Coach Dusko Ivanovic’s team is clear to see from the stats sheet: three-point shooting, three-point shooting...and more three-point shooting. However, the numbers also show that the approach did not really work. 

Throughout the opening 30 minutes, Baskonia consistently maintained a ratio of two long-range attempts for every shot from inside the arc, reaching the end of the third quarter with a massive 33 three-pointers compared to just 17 from two-point range. 

The imbalance was somewhat addressed inside the final 10 minutes, finishing with 16-of-26 on two-pointers (61.5%) and 12 three-point conversions on 41 attempts (29.3%).  

Baskonia’s cause certainly was not helped by the fact that chief sharpshooter Markus Howard had his playing time cut short, firstly with a minor knee injury after a collision with Rudy Fernandez and then by moving to 3 fouls early in the second half.  

Howard was only able to spend 18 minutes on the floor but still finished as his team’s leading scorer, netting 15 points on 3-of-9 three-point shooting. 

But Baskonia’s most potent long-range marksman was actually young forward Nikos Rogkavopoulos , who made 4 of his 9 deep strikes to finish with 14 points. 

Rogkavopoulos matched his career-high with 14 points

Otherwise, however, the visiting team generally misfired with its three-point barrage. The trio of Tadas Sedekerskis, Vanja Marinkovic and Dani Diez particularly struggled, combining for just 1 conversion on 11 attempts. 

Of course, the state of Howard’s knee will be a major concern for Baskonia over the next couple of days – if he can double his time on the floor from 18 to 36 minutes, the Basque team will have a much better chance of grabbing a shock road win in Game 2 on Thursday. 

But Baskonia will also need much better accuracy from deep, and probably a better balance between its inside and outside game. 

Maccabi Tel Aviv BC leaned on its big men to beat Panathinaikos BC 97-91 in Game 1 of their best-of-five playoff series. 

Maccabi's frontline delivered in Game 1 win at OAKA

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv overcame an incredible basketball atmosphere at OAKA to [beat Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens 97-91 in Game 1](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/maccabi-steals-game-1-at-panathinaikos-87-91/) of their best-of-five playoff series. In particular, the visitors' big men delivered, giving Maccabi plenty of options on offense. 

[Jake Cohen](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/jake-cohen/005145/) started at power forward and immediately delivered, allowing Maccabi to shake off a slow start. Cohen scored a layup, a mid-range jumper and a three-pointer to give Maccabi a 9-12 lead, setting the tone in a high-scoring first quarter.

Even when Panathinaikos regrouped in the second quarter, Maccabi always found good options in the paint. [Josh Nebo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/josh-nebo/011199/) pulled down 5 of his team's 10 first-half offensive rebounds and both [Jasiel Rivero](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/jasiel-rivero/011214/) and [James Webb](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/james-webb-iii/011971/) helped Maccabi in many ways, particularly on offense.

Jake Cohen, Josh Nebo, James Webb and Jasiel Rivero combined for 34 points in Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv's 87-91 road win Game 1 of its playoffs series against Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens.

Maccabi's frontline: rock-solid in Game 1

Webb provided a couple of highlight plays with an off-balance basket and a two-handed dunk. Rivero was really effective in the paint, using his post skills to go against [Mathias Lessort](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/mathias-lessort/003842/). With the game on the line, Nebo played a crucial role, converting an alley-oop dunk in the penultimate minute of the game before drawing a foul with 3.1 seconds remaining and his team up 87-89. He sank both free-throw attempts to put the victory on ice.

"We just stuck with it. In playoff basketball, no games can be won in the first quarter, first minute, second quarter. We just have to stick with it, be resilient," Nebo said. "If they go up, we just have to keep playing. We cannot get too high, get too low. I think tonight, we all stuck with it. We stuck with the game plan, we kept believing in each other. We keep our attitudes in a good place and at the end of the game, we were able to find the way to win the game."

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The thoughts of coach Kattash after the game. <br><br>“We have a lot of things to improve, both sides of the floor” <a href="https://t.co/5C8e7upWPU">pic.twitter.com/5C8e7upWPU</a></p>&mdash; Turkish Airlines EuroLeague (@EuroLeague) <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroLeague/status/1782869788085125544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

### An impressive night by Maccabi's bigs

Indeed, Maccabi's frontline showed great resilience. Cohen had 7 points in less than 13 minutes, Webb finished the game with 6 points and 5 rebounds in 11 minutes, Nebo had 12 points, 8 rebounds and a PIR of 18, and Rivero needed just 15 minutes to get 9 points and 4 rebounds.

Above all, Maccabi showed that plenty of its players can contribute, not just its star perimeter players, such as [Wade Baldwin](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/wade-baldwin-iv/009863/) and [Lorenzo Brown](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/lorenzo-brown/009622/). That makes Maccabi more unpredictable and definitely a better team going forward.

The Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv players come together during their road win at Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens in Game 1 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs.

Oded Kattash got plenty of output from his big men in an important triumph at Panathinaikos

Los Blancos never trailed and led by as many as 24 in the first game of their best-of-five playoff series

Real blasts Baskonia 90-74 in series opener

Real Madrid underlined its status as the defending champion and regular season standings leader by comfortably downing Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, 90-74, at WiZink Center on Tuesday. The teams will meet again in the Spanish capital for Game 2 on Thursday.

The home team needed little time to establish a double-digit margin, and the lead reached 17 points – 42-25 – midway through the second quarter. It was 48-37 at the interval, which grew beyond 20 points in the third and the outcome was never in doubt after that.

Dzanan Musa led the hosts with 16 points, while Vincent Poirier dominated inside with 10 points and 7 rebounds. Facu Campazzo also scored 10 points while Sergio Llull hit 2 triples to become the competition’s all-time leader in three-pointers made. Markus Howard paced Baskonia with 15 points despite only playing 18 minutes due to a knee injury. Matt Costello, Niko Rogkavopoulus and Codi Miller-McIntyre all netted 14.

Game Videos

Real scored the first 5 points, sparked by Musa’s layup-and-one, before Mario Hezonja’s triple stretched the early lead to 8-2. Rogkavopoulus and Costello boosted Baskonia with three-pointers, but Hezonja struck twice more from deep to make it 19-11. Musa netted again for a double-digit lead, before Guerschon Yabusele and Campazzo extended the lead to 25-11. Costello and Howard narrowed the deficit, with Howard’s free throws making it 26-17 after 10 minutes.

Howard struck his first three-pointer early in the second quarter, but Real kept rolling inside through Poirier, Gabriel Deck and Llull. Costello’s slam and Howard’s three gave Baskonia hope, but Poirier at the rim, Deck in transition and Sergio Rodriguez from deep made it 39-25. Rudy Fernandez added another triple for a 10-0 run, ended by Rogkavopoulus from distance. Miller-McIntyre and Vanja Marinkovic completed a 0-7 run, but Walter Tavares and Musa scored inside for a 48-37 halftime score.

Tavares’s dunk opened the third quarter scoring before Campazzo and Musa added triples for a 56-37 lead, the biggest so far. Costello and Musa traded threes before Yabusele struck from deep for a 64-42 margin. Rogkavopoulos answered with a pair of long-range strikes, but Alberto Abalde and Poirier scored at the rim to push Real’s lead to 70-53 with 10 minutes remaining despite a buzzer-beating three from Chris Chiozza.

Poirier and Abalde were again on target early in the fourth as Baskonia’s comeback hopes disappeared, with the margin growing to 76-53. Llull’s trademark triple got the fans on their feet, as did Poirier’s fierce putback slam. Marinkovic and Tadas Sedekerskis netted inside, before Llull got an ovation with another triple to become the competition’s all-time leader in three-pointers. Miller-McIntyre scored twice in a row, but deep strikes from Fernandez and Abalde ensured a comfortable winning margin.

Sergio Llull has surpassed Juan Carlos Navarro to become the all-time leader in made three-pointers in EuroLeague history.

Sergio Llull is the EuroLeague’s three-point king!

The Turkish Airlines EuroLeague has a new three-point king, as Real Madrid’s [Sergio Llull](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/sergio-llull/tgb/) is the new outright leader in three-pointers made with 624 in 403 contests. With his second three in Real Madrid’s game against Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in Game 1 of the 2023-24 playoffs, the 36-year-old overtook [Juan Carlos Navarro](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/juan-carlos-navarro/adi/)’s career total of 623 in 341 games.

Now in his 17th season in the EuroLeague, Llull’s ability to score from behind the arc even led to a specific word being used to describe his audacious attempts: the ‘*mandarina*’. He has wowed fans at WiZink Center time and time again with his shooting, while opposition teams have been left feeling hopeless as he makes the impossible seem possible.

There’s the record! Sergio Llull strikes from deep to become the EuroLeague’s all-time leader in three-pointers

Llull’s record-breaker! Motorola Magic Moment

### Llull and his three-point shooting

Llull didn’t hit a single three during his first season in the competition back in 2007-08, going 0 for 6, but he has been striking from deep ever since. He made 19 triples in 2008-09, 28 in 2009-10 and 34 in 2010-11 before a down year in 2011-12. The Real star hit back in 2012-13 with 42 three-pointers, then he built on that in the following four seasons: 51 in 2013-14, 53 in 2014-15, 55 in 2015-16, and a career-best 73 in 2016-17.

After being limited to just four appearances in 2017-18, in which he made 9 triples, Llull hit 53 in 2018-19, 21 in 2019-20, 38 in 2020-21, 59 in 2021-22, 32 in 2022-23 and now 44 in 2023-24. Despite being one of the oldest players in the league, Llull still finds a way to influence games and, importantly, keep Real winning.

### A EuroLeague legend

A three-time EuroLeague champion with Real (2015, 2018, 2023), Llull also has a EuroLeague MVP to his name from the 2016-17 campaign – his best shooting season from deep – and was selected for the EuroLeague Basketball 2010–20 All-Decade Team. He earned All-EuroLeague First Team honors in his MVP season and was also chosen for the All-EuroLeague Second Team in 2010-11. Llull is just the second player to surpass 400 career games in the EuroLeague as he has appeared in 403 games, behind the 425 Kyle Hines of EA7 Emporio Armani Milan, while he ranks fifth all-time in points (3,915), sixth in assists (1,387), and third in minutes played (9036:48).

Llull’s history in the EuroLeague puts him in a truly elite category, and now he’ll go in search of a fourth EuroLeague title that would see him – and Real teammates Sergio Rodriguez and Rudy Fernandez – tie Hines and Saras Jasikevicius for four, the most in the modern era.

Real Madrid guard Sergio Llull spoke to EuroLeague TV after his team's Game 1 win against Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs. He became the EuroLeague's all-time leader in three-point makes during that game.

Sergio Llull, Real Madrid: 'It's amazing to pass Navarro'

The Real Madrid legend has surpassed Barcelona great Juan Carlos Navarro

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv rallied from a double-digit deficit to beat Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens 87-91 on the road in Game 1 of their best-of-five playoffs series. Offensive rebounds and turnovers were two of the biggest keys to the game. 

Maccabi's offensive rebounds led to big win 

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv rallied from a double-digit deficit to [beat Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens 87-91](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/maccabi-steals-game-1-at-panathinaikos-87-91/) on the road in Game 1 of their best-of-five playoff series. Offensive rebounds and turnovers were two of the biggest keys in the Israeli side's win. 

Maccabi won the battle of the boards, outrebounding Panathinaikos 33-37. The guests pulled down 15 offensive rebounds and allowed Panathinaikos to get just 6 offensive boards at the other end. [Josh Nebo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/josh-nebo/011199/) led the way with 5 offensive rebounds, all of which came in the first half. [Antonius Cleveland](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/antonius-cleveland/012744/) and [Jasiel Rivero](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/jasiel-rivero/011214/) also grabbed multiple offensive boards against the Greens.

After finishing the regular season with nine consecutive home wins, Panathinaikos look to carry that form into postseason versus a dangerous Maccabi roster, which cruised through its play-in test by crushing Baskonia 113-85 and are one of the only three visiting teams to have won in Athens this term.

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens-Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv| Playoffs Game 1 | 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague

### Maccabi played smarter and weathered the storm

The guests also took much better care of the ball, limiting themselves to just 6 turnovers and picking up 8 steals. As many as seven Maccabi players had at least one steal, which speaks wonders about its overall defensive activity. On the other hand, Panathinaikos had 3 steals and 12 turnovers. Kostas Sloukas had a career-high 13 assists and just one turnover, which came on the Greens' final possession, with Maccabi leading 87-89 in the final minute.

Small details made the difference down the stretch. Panathinaikos hit its opening 12 two-point shots and was still 16 of 18 (87.5% 2FG) late in the third quarter, with the Greens on track to break an all-time playoff record which has belonged to Anadolu Efes Istanbul (80.0% 2FG) since 2022. Panathinaikos, however, went on to score just 6 of its last 12 two-pointers (50%).

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="und" dir="ltr">1️⃣:0️⃣ <a href="https://t.co/xeaynAptR6">pic.twitter.com/xeaynAptR6</a></p>&mdash; Maccabi Tel Aviv BC 🇮🇱​ (@MaccabiTLVBC) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaccabiTLVBC/status/1782857003074810264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Free throws missed were also a big factor in this game, as Ergin Ataman's squad went 16 of 26 from the foul line. Center [Mathias Lessort](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/mathias-lessort/003842/) went 4 of 11 (36.4% FT) from the foul line on the night after hitting 65.8% of his attempts throughout the regular season. Maccabi hit 21-of-27 attempts (77.8% FT), none more important than Nebo's foul shots which sealed the outcome with 3.1 seconds remaining.

Josh Nebo dominated the Greens' glass as his team secured an important road victory

Maccabi leaned on offensive rebounds in Game 1 win at Panathinaikos 

In a thriller that went down to the final seconds, Maccabi Tel Aviv BC struck first in its best-of-five playoffs series by downing Panathinaikos BC 87-91 at OAKA in the Greek capital on Tuesday.

Maccabi steals Game 1 at Panathinaikos, 87-91

In a thriller that went down to the final seconds, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv struck first in its best-of-five playoffs series by downing Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens 87-91 at OAKA in the Greek capital on Tuesday. Maccabi takes an early lead in the series, with Panathinaikos set to host Game 2 on Thursday. 

Bonzie Colson led the winners with 18 points. Lorenzo Brown added 16, Wade Baldwin had 15 before leaving the game due to an injury, while Josh Nebo had 12 and 8 rebounds for Maccabi. Mathias Lessort paced Panathinaikos with 22 points. Kostas Sloukas added 12 and a career-high 13 assists, while Jerian Grant and Marius Grigonis each had 11 for the Greens.

### Cohen, Rivero gave Maccabi the lead

Dinos Mitoglou got Panathinaikos going with a bomb from downtown and Kendrick Nunn added a one-handed floater in the lane for a 5-2 lead. Brown buried a three-pointer, then Jake Cohen added a layup, a mid-range jumper and a three-pointer to give Maccabi a 9-12 lead. Sloukas scored in penetration and Grigonis bettered Josh Nebo's put-back dunk with a triple that tied the game at 14-14. Baldwin stepped up for Maccabi and Jasiel Rivero's jumper boosted his team's lead to 17-21. Sloukas hit a triple and fed Grigonis for another one from beyond the arc. Lessort erased James Webb's acrobatic layup with a huge dunk, then Rivero fixed the score at 25-26 after 10 minutes.

### Vildoza, Lessort led the Greens' surge

Grant buried a baseline jumper early in the second quarter. Tamir Blatt and Luca Vildoza exchanged three-pointers, then Lessort's power layup boosted Panathinaikos's lead to 33-29. Grant sank a mid-range shot and Lessort added a layup for a 37-30 Panathinaikos margin. Nebo stepped up with a put-back slam that Vildoza bettered with back-to-back triples, making it a double-digit game at 43-32. Colson followed a three-point play with a turnaround jumper, then Nebo's tip-in gave Maccabi hope at 46-39. Lessort dunked again and Sloukas restored a 50-40 Panathinaikos lead. Antonius Cleveland got Maccabi within 50-42 at halftime. 

### Panathinaikos held on to lead

Baldwin scored in penetration soon after the break. Mitoglou sparked a 6-0 run which was highlighted by Sloukas's fastbreak layup. Colson sank a corner triple and Brown erased Mitoglou's circus shot with a mid-range jumper for a 58-49 Maccabi deficit. Even when Brown kept pacing Maccabi, Sloukas found ways to fix the hosts' offense, finding Lessort for a dunk and Mitoglou for a close jumper. Cleveland tried to change things with an off-balance three-point play and Rivero's basket made the Greens call a timeout at 64-59. Lessort and Webb traded dunks, then Panagiotis Kakaitzakis restored a 70-63 Panathinaikos lead after 30 minutes.

### Down to the wire!

Baldwin took over with 5 quick points early in the fourth quarter, single-handedly bringing Maccabi within 70-68. Colson's three-pointer soon tied it at 71-71. Lessort scored three times in the paint but he didn't find much help around. Meanwhile, Colson insisted from downtown to complete Maccabi's comeback, 77-78, with 6 minutes left. Brown joined the three-point shootout but Grant scored in transition and matched Colson's jump hook with an off-balance basket for an 81-83 score. Colson hit free throws and Nebo's alley-oop dunk made it a five-point game, 82-87. Grant answered from downtown before Nunn's layup tied it at 87-87 with 52.7 seconds left. Brown banked in a close shot and Nebo drew a foul with 3.1 seconds remaining. He hit both attempts to give Maccabi the first win of the series!

Wade Baldwin of Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv is guarded by Jerian Grant of Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens in Game 1 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Playoffs.

In a game that went down to the wire, the Israeli managed to grab a crucial road win