Unexpected losses for Greens and Reds

Despite being favorites on paper, both Panathinaikos and Olympiakos lost their Euroleague games this week, the Greens at home to Monaco and the Reds in Belgrade to Partizan.

First on Thursday, Olympiakos went down 78-70 in Serbia, as Partizan snapped the Piraeus team's six-game winning streak.

The Greeks started perfectly, with five in five triples, to lead by 14 points, but then imploded, with just two in 26 outside the 6.75-meter line. Partizan persisted, turned things around with the help of its noisy fans and deservedly prevailed with a strong fourth quarter (partial 28-13).

Playing without Sasha Vezenkov once again, Olympiakos had Evan Fournier make 16 points and Nikola Milutinov notch up 13 points plus eight rebounds.

On Friday Panathinaikos lost 91-88 to Monaco at home, with the Monegasques having Greece coach Vassilis Spanoulis debuting on their...