In a packed John Cain Arena on Thursday night, Panathinaikos and Partizan… won over Melbourne.
The Pavlos Giannakopoulos Tournament – staged outside Greece for the first time – drew a sell-out crowd of 10,500, underlining the passion of local basketball fans.
Next up is Sydney, where KK Partizan will face the Sydney Kings and Panathinaikos will take on the Adelaide 36ers tomorrow, Sunday, at Qudos Bank Arena.
Despite the jet lag of several players who landed in Australia only hours before tip-off, the game was played at a high tempo, with both sides battling hard for the win.
Panathinaikos lifted its game in the third and fourth quarters to secure a 91–82 victory, led by Kendrik Nunn (21 points) and Omer Yurtseven (20 points, 13 rebounds). Duane Washington top-scored for Partizan with 19 points.
Quarter scores: 20–27, 37–44, 62–58, 91–82.
The atmosphere inside the arena matched the occasion, as Greek and Serbian fans – along with many others – brought colour, noise and excitement to welcome two giants of European basketball.
Also in attendance was Australian NBA player and Boomers star Josh Giddey, who had trained with Panathinaikos earlier in the week at facilities in Port Melbourne.
Halftime delivered one of the night’s most memorable moments, when Greek and Serbian dance groups in traditional costume joined together on court, performing to music from both cultures and electrifying the crowd.
At the post-game press conference, Panathinaikos coach Ergin Ataman expressed his delight that the tournament had made its debut in Australia.
“It’s a different experience for us. I believe it shows different paths for the future of world basketball. From what I saw… it was an incredible atmosphere for a friendly game, in a sold-out arena. Both teams played as if it were a real match, even though neither is fully ready yet. But they took it seriously, and the atmosphere was fantastic. We played good basketball, especially in the second half, and we got the win.”
Asked by Neos Kosmos whether games in Australia might become a tradition if Panathinaikos wins the EuroLeague this year, Ataman smiled and said:
“Yes, we’ll see. Maybe next year an Australian team will travel somewhere else in the world to play… It’s nice to have games like this in the pre-season. What I saw was that the EuroLeague itself was here – which was strange for me: the referees, the head of referees, the organizers, all present. Maybe EuroLeague is planning something different for the future, to make basketball more global.”
“The NBA is trying to keep European teams close, perhaps the EuroLeague will try to bring in Australian teams, or maybe even NBA teams will join the EuroLeague in the future, because it’s a more exciting competition.”
“As you know, the EuroLeague regular season is more exciting than the NBA regular season.”
Reflecting on the timing of the visit so soon after EuroBasket 2025 – where Ataman’s Turkey and Yurtseven won silver – the coach explained:
“It was very important for me to be here, out of respect for my team, for the Pavlos Giannakopoulos family, and for all the friends and figures of basketball in Australia.”
Yurtseven added that it had taken them five flights within 24 hours to reach Melbourne and Sydney, though his performance on court showed no signs of fatigue and gave him confidence for the season ahead.
Partizan coach Željko Obradović, who led Panathinaikos to multiple titles during his time with the club, also praised the occasion:
“We’re happy to be here and to play in a tournament that carries the name of Pavlos Giannakopoulos, a man who made an enormous contribution to European basketball and especially to Panathinaikos.”
“It was a beautiful game, in an excellent atmosphere, with fans from Greece and Serbia. We were missing some players, but that’s not a problem – what matters is to understand what we did right and wrong in our game.”
Obradović reflected warmly on his own history with Panathinaikos: “We played in 27 finals together and won 23 trophies. Panathinaikos is like my own club. I’m from Serbia and Partizan is something I always carry within me, but Panathinaikos is, more or less, the same. The feeling is special.”
More photos below:
