AS Monaco enjoyed a sweet Turkish Airlines EuroLeague debut by beating visiting Panathinaikos OPAP Athens 75-63 in the season-opening game at Salle Gaston Medecin on Thursday evening.
The hosts dominated from the very beginning, building a 22-15 advantage in the first quarter and never looking back.
The margin increased little by little in the second half to a maximum of 22 points midway through the last quarter, which allowed Monaco to enjoy an early celebration with its fans despite a late 0-10 late run by the Greens.
Danilo Andjusic had a career-high 17 points in just 14 minutes to lead five Monaco scorers in double digits. Mike James scored 11 points and Paris Lee, Donatas Motiejunas and Donta Hall had 10 apiece. Ioannis Papapetrou set the tone for Panathinaikos with 16 points and 6 rebounds, followed by Daryl Macon Jr. with 13 points in the losing effort.
