The yellows will look to earn their first road win of the season against the revamped Greeks (9:15 PM local, 2:15 PM ET). Kattash: “We know what to expect”
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv will look to earn its first road win of the EuroLeague season on Friday night, when the Israeli champs visits Athens for a bout with Panathinaikos (9:15 PM israel time, 2:15 PM ET). The yellows landed in Greece two days after suffering their maiden loss of the campaign in Valencia.
“It was a strange feeling in vs Valencia, we didn’t know what to expect, how are we going to feel and in what shape we are in”, said head coach Oded Kattash, “now we at least know what to expect after going through the experience. We need to find a way to show up with better energies and hopefully the game against Valencia helped us regain our rhythm after two weeks of not playing. As always, our hearts are with the people back home – we want to give them strength and make them happy”.
Panathinaikos went through a complete overhaul this summer, bringing in two-time EuroLeague champion Ergin Ataman as head coach and bolstering the roster with big name. Those include Kostas Sloukas who made a controversial move from cross-town rivals Olympiacos; former Maccabi center Mathias Lessort; and 7-season NBA vet Juancho Hernangomez.
The greens, however, have started the season with two losses in three games, including an overtime defeat in the hands of Olympiacos and a home 14-point loss to Fenerbahce. The head-to-head record between Maccabi and Pao stands at 16-15 in favor of the yellows, who won three of the last four matchups.
