Olympiacos and Panathinaikos failed on Friday to overcome the challenges posed by Monaco and Fenerbahçe in the EuroLeague Final Four semifinals. Despite their ambitions to meet for the first time in a EuroLeague final, the two Greek rivals will now fight for the 3rd place in the consolation final of Europe’s top basketball competition on Sunday (May 25) at 17:00.

A few hours later, at 20:00, Monaco—coached by Vassilis Spanoulis—will compete for the trophy against Sarunas Jasikevicius’ Fenerbahçe. Both matches will be broadcast live on Novasports Prime.

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME CONFIRMED 🏆

All eyes on Sunday night 👀#F4GLORY pic.twitter.com/xUwSjSHuHC

— Turkish Airlines EuroLeague (@EuroLeague) May 23, 2025

Olympiacos Falls Short Despite High Hopes

Olympiacos, who finished first in the regular season, aimed for their first title since 2013 (London) and the fourth overall in a year marking the club’s 100th anniversary. However, Monaco dashed their plans. Spanoulis’ team pulled off a major upset against the favorites in the second semifinal, defeating the “Reds” 78–68.

Giorgos Bartzokas’ squad looked nothing like the team that topped the regular season standings. The game further reinforced the trend of the top regular-season team failing to win the title. Olympiacos struggled offensively, with only Evan Fournier rising to the occasion, scoring a remarkable 31 points—a personal EuroLeague record for him.

Fournier shot 7/9 free throws (78%), 6/9 two-pointers (67%), and 4/9 three-pointers (44%).

In contrast, Olympiacos MVP and top scorer Sasha Vezenkov was far from his usual form. The Bulgarian forward, for the first time this season, failed to reach double digits in EuroLeague scoring—finishing with just 7 points (2/4 two-pointers, 0/6 three-pointers, 3/5 free throws).

“We had 18% from three-point range. Many players seemed to want to end the game too early. We couldn’t handle the pressure or control our emotions. We had 68 points total and one player scored 30, so clearly things went completely wrong for us,” said coach Bartzokas after the game.

Panathinaikos’ Dream Dashed by Fenerbahçe

Panathinaikos, who finished 3rd in the regular season, entered the Final Four in Abu Dhabi aiming to defend last year’s title and achieve the first back-to-back championships in club history by earning their 8th EuroLeague star. However, Fenerbahçe crushed that dream, winning 82–76.

Despite the return of Mathias Lessort after five months, and a strong showing from EuroLeague regular season MVP Kendrick Nunn (19 points before fouling out with 5:45 remaining), and a 20-point, 6-rebound performance from Cedi Osman, it wasn’t enough. Jasikevicius’ side triumphed behind the clutch play of Devon Hall—who scored 18 points (4/6 from three)—and Erick McCollum, who came off the bench to change the momentum with 13 points, including a dagger three-pointer late in the game.

Panathinaikos coach Ergin Ataman was brief in his post-game remarks, giving credit to the victors: “They played better than us. Their defense was stronger. Congratulations to Fenerbahçe and good luck in the final.”

A Match of Pride Ahead of the Playoff Showdowns

While the EuroLeague third-place match does not award a trophy, Sunday’s game will be a battle of pride for Olympiacos and Panathinaikos—a warm-up for the Greek Basket League playoffs. The two “eternal enemies” will meet again on Friday, May 30, at OAKA in the first of at least three more clashes for the domestic title.