Panathinaikos will head to Istanbul to try
to defend its Turkish Airlines Euroleague crown at the 2012 Final Four
after holding off Maccabi Electra 86-85 in a classic Game 5 in front of a
packed house at OAKA.
Euroleague MVP Dimitris Diamantidis capped a
fantastic evening with the game-winning free throw with 5 seconds
remaining and then a steal on the final play to seal the victory.
Diamantidis finished with 25 points, a career-high 34 performance index
rating and came within 1 of a playoffs record with 12 fouls drawn. His
15 free throws made established a new playoffs single-game record.