Greece’s government condemns basketball team’s walkout

February 14, 2019

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece's government has condemned a walkout by the basketball club Olympiakos during a Greek Cup semifinal game against rival Panathinaikos following complaints over the refereeing.

Olympiakos forfeited the game at Olympic Stadium in Athens on Wednesday, leaving at halftime and trailing 40-25. A spokesman for the team said he was "disgusted" with the quality of the refereeing.

The action handed Panathinaikos and American coach Rick Pitino a place in Sunday's cup final against PAOK in Crete.

Giorgos Vassiliadis, the deputy minister for sport, described the game as a "blow to the sport" but said he could not interfere with the referee selection process.

Pitino tweeted after the incident, "Well, in 42 years of coaching, I thought I had seen it all."

in this topic

Winter

United States

3 Takeaways: USMNT Smokes Panama

The second-youngest U.S. men's national team in history wasn't perfect, but it rocked Panama to the tune of 6-2.

those were the latest stories

Want to see more?

View All Stories