Olympiakos defeats Panathinaikos, Ivanovic goes

By George Georgakopoulos

Olympiakos secured the top spot in the Basket League?s regular season through a 77-66 away win at Panathinaikos, sinking the Greens into all kinds of problems, including the sacking of its coach.

The eventful game at the Olympic Sports Hall on Saturday evening nearly never finished as a provocative gesture by Olympiakos skipper Vassilis Spanoulis at the Panathinaikos fans earned him a technical foul and triggered an attempted invasion by a handful of home supporters. Contrary to what the new sports regulations of the government dictate, the match was not abandoned, on the pretext that there was no player injury.

Playing without forward James Gist, who was found to have used cannabis during a drug test at last month?s Cup final, Panathinaikos was always second-best to Olympiakos in a game that it had to win by at least seven points to snatch the top spot from the Reds.

Olympiakos had a great all-around game, as it was dominant in rebounds and in three-pointers, just as its opponent ended the game with just 17 percent (5 in 30) outside the 6.75-meter line.

On Sunday Panathinaikos announced the dismissal of coach Dusko Ivanovic, who only served for 10 months on the Greens? bench and won a Greek Cup. His assistant Sotiris Manolopoulos will take over until a replacement is appointed.

Panathinaikos is also certain to suffer a home ban ahead of the play-offs due to its fans? actions.