CSKA — Panathinaikos, 03 January 2020

Sold-out Yantarny in Kaliningrad is ready to see our team hosting its most dangerous rival of the last season.

Pregame breakdown

Panathinaikos head coach Rick Pitino made his EuroLeague debut last season with a 96-84 home win over CSKA. The American defeated champions-to-be twice though he needed Nick Calathes’ crazy buzzer-beater to do it in Moscow.

The Army Men finished the Year 2019 with nice winning streak so Dimitris Itoudis had no need to change the routine. Upon the return from Minsk the Red-Blues had enough time to practice and spend New Year with their families.

The status of the home game influenced the schedule of the trip. As it was a week ago, the team left USH CSKA in the morning to have full-scale practice in the Kaliningrad gym in the evening.

Referees

Boris Ryzhik (crew chief, Ukraine), Carlos Peruga (Spain), Milivoje Jovcic (Serbia).

Pregame quotes

Dimitris Itoudis, CSKA head coach:

First of all, Happy New Year for everyone. Regarding the game, Panathinaikos is an ambitious team that is built to do something big. We are in good mood, we prepare well and we expect our fans to provide us great support. We need to be concentrated, motivated, mobile and aggressive from the first to the last minute of the game.

Semen Antonov, CSKA forward:

We will have great basketball game tomorrow. Panathinaikos changed the coach recently, with coach Pitino back they started to play more aggressive, with big number of three-pointers and transitions, they fight for rebounds. We need to stop Calathes who averages more than 8 assists and scores a lot. We expect the fans to help us. This is the first game of the calendar year, it closes the first leg, so we will take it extremely serious.

“Relativity” connections

CSKA head coach Itoudis spent 12 seasons as an assistant coach at Panathinaikos from 1999 through 2012. He helped the club win five Euroleague championships, 11 Greek League titles and seven Greek Cups during that span. Only Nick Calathes and Ian Vougioukas are with the club from that period. CSKA assistant Andreas Pistiolis was also a part of that successful team.

Coach Darryl Middleton played for Panathinaikos for 5 years (2000-05) winning two EuroLeague titles with the Athenians.

Mike James played for Panathinaikos for two seasons from 2016 to 2018. He led the team to back-to-back Greek League titles and a Greek Cup in that time.

Ioannis Papapetrou of Panathinaikos was a teammate of Daniel Hackett at Olympiacos for two seasons, from 2015 to 2017. They reached the EuroLeague championship game in 2017 together.

Nikita Kurbanov of CSKA and Panathinaikos big man Ian Vougioukas were teammates at Unics Kazan in 2013-14, when they reached the EuroCup Finals together.

Janis Strelnieks and Papapetrou were teammates with Olympiacos Piraeus in the 2017-18 season.

Vougioukas and Will Clyburn were teammates at ratiopharm Ulm for part of the 2014-15 season.

Kosta Koufos was a teammate of two Panathinaikos players during his NBA career. He played with Wesley Johnson for the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2010-11 season. Giorgios Papagiannis was his partner in the Sacramento Kings from 2016 to 2018.

Important numbers

Coach Itoudis has used 10 different players in the starting lineup this season. Only Nikita Kurbanov has started every game.

Mike James has made at least 1 three-point shot in 16 of his last 17 games. He ranks sixth this season in three-point accuracy at 48.9% and fifth with 2.8 three-point shots made per game.

James has scored in double figures in each of his last 14 games. He ranks third this season with 20.0 points per game.

James had recorded double-figure PIRs in 14 straight games. He is tied second this season in average PIR with 21.7 per game.

Mike James is 4 assists shy of 500 for his career.

Kyle Hines ranks third all-time with 222 blocked shots.

Hines ranks second all-time with 542 offensive rebounds. Felipe Reyes is the all-time leader with 695.

Hines ranks seventh all-time with 1,214 rebounds. Georgios Printezis of Olympiacos is sixth with 1,279 and counting.

Kyle Hines needs 9 more steals to reach 200 for his career.

Janis Strelnieks ranks sixth all-time in free-throw accuracy at 91.1%.

Daniel Hackett has had at least 1 steal in seven straight games.

Hackett needs 18 rebounds to reach 500 for his career.

Nikita Kurbanov has exactly 1,000 career points.

Johannes Voigtmann is 12 points shy of 1,000 for his career.

Voigtmann has had at least 1 steal in four of his last five appearances.

Past matchups

Wins/losses: 21-19
1981-82 – European Champions Cup. Group Stage: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 87-83 (-4)
1981-82 – European Champions Cup. Group Stage: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 83-80 (+3)
1994-95 – European Championship for Men’s Clubs. Semifinal Round: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 101-77 (-24)
1994-95 – European Championship for Men’s Clubs. Semifinal Round: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 77-70 (+7)
1995-96 – European Championship for Men’s Clubs. Semifinal: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 71-81 (-10)
2000-01 – SuproLeague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 69-57 (+12)
2000-01 – SuproLeague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 89-81 (-8)
2001-02 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 85-91 (-6)
2001-02 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 83-80 (-3)
2003-04 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 58-69 (+11)
2003-04 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 75-68 (+7)
2004-05 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 73-85 (+12)
2004-05 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 75-72 (+3)
2004-05 – Euroleague. 3rd place game: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 91-94 ОТ (-3)
2005-06 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 92-82 (-10)
2005-06 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 84-89 (-5)
2006-07 – Euroleague. Final: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 93-91 (-2)
2008-09 – Euroleague. Final: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 73-71 (-2)
2010-11 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 74-60 (-14)
2010-11 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 68-72 (-4)
2011-12 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 76-78 ОТ (+2)
2011-12 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 91-75 (+16)
2011-12 – Euroleague. Semifinal: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 66-64 (+2)
2012-13 – Euroleague. Top 16: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 86-69 (+17)
2012-13 – Euroleague. Top 16: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 63-69 (+6)
2013-14 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. CSKA – Panathinaikos: 77-74 ОТ (+3)
2013-14 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. CSKA – Panathinaikos: 77-51 (+26)
2013-14 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. Panathinaikos – CSKA: 65-59 (-6)
2013-14 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. Panathinaikos – CSKA: 73-72 ОТ (-1)
2013-14 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. CSKA – Panathinaikos: 74-44 (+30)
2014-15 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. CSKA – Panathinaikos: 93-66 (+27)
2014-15 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. CSKA – Panathinaikos: 100-80 (+20)
2014-15 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. Panathinaikos – CSKA: 86-85 (-1)
2014-15 – Euroleague. Quarterfinals. Panathinaikos – CSKA: 55-74 (+19)
2016-17 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 81-77 (+4)
2016-17 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 85-80 ОТ (-5)
2017-18 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 81-63 (+18)
2017-18 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 70-75 (+5)
2018-19 – Euroleague. Regular Season: Panathinaikos – CSKA: 96-84 (-12)
2018-19 – Euroleague. Regular Season: CSKA – Panathinaikos: 77-78 (-1)

Short dossier

Panathinaikos Athens, Greece
Founded: 1908
Colors: green, white
Home court: O.A.K.A (18,700)
President: Emmanuel Papadopoulos
Head coach: Rick Pitino
Website: www.paobc.gr
Trophy case:
- 6-time Euroleague champion (1996, 2000, 02, 07, 09, 11),
- International Cup winner (1996),
- 37-time Greek champion (1946, 47, 50, 51, 54, 61, 62, 67, 69, 71-75, 77, 80-82, 84, 98-2001, 03-11, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19),
- 19-time Greek Cup winner (1979, 82, 83, 86, 93, 96, 2003, 05-09, 12-17, 19)