In a 84-70 win over rival Olympiakos, Panathinaikos won the Greek basketball league for a record 37th time last night in Athens.
That was the fifth and deciding game in the playoff finals 3-2.
Trailing 35-31 at halftime, Panathinaikos used a 29-15 run in the third quarter to take control. Guard Mike James led Panathinaikos with 18 points, while center Jamel McLean was Olympiakos’ top scorer with 16 points.
Panathinaikos’ fans dedicated the title to Pavlos Giannakopoulos, the recently deceased former owner of the basketball club and father of current owner, Dimitris Giannakopoulos, en.protothema.gr reported.
It wasn’t a drama-free match, as Panathinaikos fans spent 15 minutes throwing water and plastic bottles at Olympiakos’ bench just before the second half of the game commenced, causing a significant delay.