The week’s schedule in the Nicosia Championship concluded last night with victories for First Shoot APOPAL and the Moufflons. The Moufflons’ win over the Macedonians secured them a place in the Final-4 of the Bronze Category, while APOPAL’s away win in Geri not only confirmed their own presence in the Silver Final-4, but also kept alive the possibility—under certain conditions—of finishing top of the standings in the final round.
In the earlier game at the Geri Gym, First Shoot APOPAL had to work hard but eventually claimed a valuable 42–46 away win against KEP-Dikefalos Geri. The game was highly competitive throughout, with momentum swinging back and forth between the two teams.
The first half was perfectly balanced, with both sides going stride for stride and heading into the locker rooms with KEP holding a narrow 23–22 lead. Early in the second half, the hosts enjoyed their best stretch of the game, extending their advantage to as much as +11 (38–27) by the end of the third quarter.
Facing the prospect of defeat, Antonis Assiikkalis’ side raised their intensity, applied full-court pressure, forced several turnovers and pushed the hosts into a prolonged offensive drought. This surge allowed APOPAL to complete a comeback and secure their fourth win of the Second Phase.
Once again, Andreas Fotiou was the standout performer and MVP for the Pallouriotissa-based side, scoring 23 points, with Savvas Siakallis adding 7 and Kyriakos Pelekanos contributing 6. For KEP, Petros Iosifidis led the scoring with 11 points, followed by Dimitris Varzakakos and Dimitris Karalagas, who scored 9 points each.
Later in the evening, in Lakatamia, the Moufflons were fully focused against Makedones-Dimco, cruising to a comfortable 68–39 victory and securing their place in the Bronze Category Semifinals for the first time in their history.
Apart from a tentative opening quarter (16–15), Lampros Stylianou’s team dominated the remainder of the game, receiving strong perimeter support and knocking down 9 of 20 three-pointers. By halftime, the “wild goats” had built a double-digit lead at 34–23, which they not only maintained but steadily increased in the second half.
By the end of the third quarter, the gap had already reached +20 (55–35), turning the final period into a formality. The final score of 68–39 sealed an emphatic 2–0 series win and qualification for the Moufflons, who are now setting their sights even higher. In the semifinals, they will face Municipality of Nicosia in a single knockout game away from home.
Marios Viennas led the scoring for the winners with 13 points, followed by Giannis Migiakis with 9, while for the visitors Panagiotis Vazoukis and Panagiotis Patzinakos stood out with 9 points each.
Last night’s game marked the final match of the season for the debutant Makedones, who have now completed their campaign. We would like to sincerely thank them for their excellent presence throughout the season and hope to see them back with us again next year.
