Panathinaikos beats Maccabi Tel Aviv 90-67 to extend perfect EuroLeague start

Dominant opening at Telekom Center Athens

Panathinaikos maintained an undefeated home record in the EuroLeague by beating Maccabi Tel Aviv 90-67 at the Telekom Center Athens, keeping the club at the top of the standings. The Greek team entered the fixture following earlier home victories against Paris and ASVEL in the competition. The hosts opened the contest with a starting lineup of Jerian Grant, Panagiotis Kalaitzakis, Eleftherios Mantzoukas, Guerschon Yabusele, and Dinos Mitoglou. Defensive pressure forced Maccabi Tel Aviv into three turnovers in the opening minutes, allowing the home team to build an early 12-6 lead midway through the period. Panathinaikos scored nine fast-break points in the first quarter, moving ahead 21-8 at the 7:30 mark behind three free throws from Sylvain Francisco and two from Yabusele, before closing the frame at 25-10.

Roster absences and bench response

The home team played without several regular rotation members, as Kendrick Nunn, Kostas Sloukas, Juancho Hernangomez, Moustapha Fall, and Iasonas Varvaritis were all unavailable before tip-off. The lineup experienced another setback during pre-game warmups when Nikos Rogkavopoulos suffered a muscle spasm in his lower back and could not play despite receiving an injection. This prompted an early return for Nigel Hayes-Davis, who checked in at the six-minute mark alongside Francisco, Badio, and Mathias Lessort. Hayes-Davis contributed 13 points on three-of-six shooting from three-point distance, adding four assists, four rebounds, and one steal across 25 minutes of play.

Halftime cushion and defensive control

Maccabi Tel Aviv struggled to find an offensive rhythm against the home defense throughout the first half. The Israeli team missed all ten of its three-point attempts across the opening two quarters of the match. Following a brief three-minute scoring lull early in the second frame, Panathinaikos widened the lead to 33-18 by the 14th minute and extended the margin to 38-21 at the 16-minute mark after a three-pointer from Hayes-Davis. By the 19th minute, the gap reached 20 points at 41-21. Panathinaikos entered the locker room at halftime ahead 43-24, having outscored the visitors 18-14 in the quarter.

Second-half scoring and final result

Panathinaikos opened the second half with six quick points from Yabusele, stretching the lead to 49-24 at 21 minutes and 13 seconds. Maccabi Tel Aviv converted its first three-pointers of the evening through Wallace and Brissett to bring the tally to 51-30 at the 22-minute mark. Further three-pointers from Mantzoukas, Grant, and Hayes-Davis pushed the score to 62-38 at the 28th minute. A Hayes-Davis steal led to an Isaac Bonga dunk, putting the hosts ahead 68-43 at the end of the third period. Yabusele finished as the game's top scorer with 17 points on three-of-five three-point shooting. Roman Sorkin led Maccabi Tel Aviv with 13 points, as the visitors dropped to 0-3 under coach Oded Kattash ahead of Panathinaikos preparing for its domestic league opener.