Despite missing two stars, CSKA Moscow rose up to win a thriller, 96-100, on the court of defending champion Anadolu Efes Istanbul to claim its first victory of the new season on Friday. CSKA evened its record at 1-1 while Efes fell to 0-2. 

CSKA takes down Efes in thriller, 96-100

The visitors led by a high of 16 points late in the third quarter but had to withstand a furious late rally by Efes to take the victory back to Moscow. Toko Shengelia had 23 points and Will Clyburn added 18 while Johannes Voigtmann and Iffe Lundberg sored 17 each for the winners. Efes wasted a 32-point show on 7-for-11 three-point shooting from Vasilije Micic while Adrien Moerman added 14 and Shane Larkin 12 for the hosts. CSKA lost big man Nikola Milutinov to injury in Round 1 and traveled without major off-season acquision Marius Grigonis to Istanbul, while Efes was without Krunoslav Simon. 

Gallery

Dunston dunked and blocked a shot to release Rodrigue Beaubois for a transition layup. James Anderson kept it going with a three-point play off a fastbreak that completed a 13-0 run for Efes's first lead, 28-26. Will Clyburn took it back from deep for CSKA before he and Ivan Ukhov pushed the visitors in front 31-36. Free throws and a full-court press kept it close until Beaubois rained a three at 37-38. Nikita Kurbanov and Micic traded triples at 40-42 before Larkin's 4 free throws tied 44-44. But Clyburn outdid him with 7 in a row the hard way to let CSKA lead 46-51 at the half. 

Itoudis after win at Efes: "A very interesting game"


### Dimitris Itoudis, CSKA Moscow

"It was a very interesting game, another one between Efes and CSKA. We're getting used to that: high score, thriller, you know. I think that we were the better team today, so congratulations to my players. I think we played to the level of physicality that is necessary to play such a game on the road against a defending champion. We came over here short-handed, but the guys kept believing. We got to the third quarter and built such a confident difference, let's say, double-digit margins all the time. And after that, their stars put a little bit of pressure on us, we made some wrong decisions. Probably, we were a little bit tired because of the small rotation; maybe that's on me. But I think that overall, we were the better team. We handled the situation well and we managed to accomplish a good win and prove to us that we can really play ball."



### Ergin Ataman, Anadolu Efes Istanbul

"Defensively, we played a terrible game. To give up 100 points on our own court, it's very difficult to win. Especially in the first half, we gave them 8 offensive rebounds and 15 points after those rebounds. So I think that today, we didn't answer them physically, and our shooters, except Micic, missed a lot of shots. Shane was 0 for 7 on three-point shots. Anyway, in the last quarter we tried to come back, but it was not enough. Also, we gave them 37 free throws. I don't know; I think that our defense was not good. We made too many fouls; 37 free throws in that kind of game is too much. So, it was not a good game for us."



### Johannes Voigtmann, CSKA Moscow
"For us, it's a good way to finally get the first win. And against a reigning champion, it's always a good win, especially on the road. This team is very talented and it's very tough to stop them. We struggled a little bit, especially at the end, to stop them. But we somehow found the way to be better on offense than we were in Milan. I think that was it. It was tight at the end. We gave up this big lead. We're just happy to be back winning."

### Tornike Shengelia, CSKA Moscow
"It was a thriller game. You have to give credit to Efes; they never gave up. But neither did we. Even though they came back to within a couple of points, we kept our cool and followed the game plan that Coach gave us, and executed. We moved the ball. Everyone contributed defensively and offensively. Johannes [Voigtmann] did an amazing job on the boards, Iffe [Lundberg], Will [Clyburn], everybody. On the defensive end, things that don't show up in the statistics, we did it. We fought for the 50-50 balls and I think that at the end of the day, that's what made the difference."



Monaco's Mitrovic on beating UNICS: "It is like some destiny."

### Zvezdan Mitrovic, AS Monaco

"First, it is like some destiny. We finished our European season here and now we start our first EuroLeague trip in Kazan. I am really happy because we won, especially in overtime. It is the beginning of the season and I think the teams are new. It is a completely different team than we played in the EuroCup Finals. I think we can analyze after the game, but my first impression is that I am really, really happy: we started with two victories in the EuroLeague."



### Velimir Perasovic, UNICS Kazan

"It was a game in which we had great expectations to win it. I think that in the last 2 or 3 minutes, they made a run and that was the key of the game. There was this moment, after we had an advantage of 12 points, when we went down mentally. The key for the game was rebounds: we fought hard but in the crucial moments, they also took these rebounds. We played without confidence on offense, that was the key in the crucial moments of the game. They had an 0-8 run in 2 or 3 minutes (early in the fourth quarter). We called timeout and changed plays, but in those moments, the team was expecting something to happen, and nothing happened. That was another key in the crucial moments of the game."



### Mike James, AS Monaco

"We won, and that is what we wanted to do. Getting a win on the road in the EuroLeague is always tough, so I am happy that we could do it, really. Defense. We started buckling down and sharing the ball, too, getting better shots, better looks. Basically, we starting getting stops and sharing the ball. We played together, as a team; it creates a nice energy and that leads to good things."

### Donta Hall, AS Monaco

"I knew coming into this game that I had to bring our energy, on and off the court: rebounding, dunking and doing the things that I usually do." 


### Mario Hezonja, UNICS Kazan

“We didn’t start the game good enough. We fought and had the win in our hands at the end, but this is Euroleague. We have to understand the game better and learn from our mistakes. It is bad to lose these two home games, but it’s the process we have to go through and embrace the challenges.”

### Andrey Vorontsevich, UNICS Kazan

“The game was not easy for both teams; the result was decided in overtime. Luck was on the side of Monaco. I hope that we will be able to quickly analyze our mistakes and will learn from this loss. Everybody wanted to win tonight. However, there are no victories without defeats. Now we are going to prepare for the next game, which will be held very soon, on October 12 against Bayern Munich.”



UNICS Kazan v AS Monaco (2021-10-08T16:00:00.000Z)

It was a bittersweet night for Efes guard Vasilije Micic, the reigning EuroLeague MVP and holder of the same Final Four honor last spring. He got off to a hot start and did not stop until he had poured in 32 points, the third-highest total in his 166-game EuroLeague career. 

Bittersweet night for the MVP

Among that haul, he made 7 three-pointers in 11 attempts, which are more than Micic had ever downed before. Alas, after 3 fouls committed in the span of 73 seconds in the third quarter, Micic was sidelined with for 6 key minutes then as CSKA built a 16-point lead. He came back to pour in 8 more points down the stretch as Efes tried desperately to come back. But with the outcome still up for grabs, he committed his fifth and final four with 1:05 left, and could not help complete the rally, which fell short.

Mario Hezonja went scoreless in the first half but allowed UNICS Kazan to keep its chances open with a really solid second half.

Hezonja takes over after the break

He finished the game with 17 points and 5 rebounds. Hezonja had 6 quick points after the break to erase Monaco's first-half margin, and kept going to give UNICS a 58-50 lead. He also scored a layup off an inbound play which eventually allowed UNICS to take the game to overtime. Hezonja could not lead his team to victory but showed he can make things happen for the Russian powerhouse going forward. 

Lorenzo Brown gave UNICS its last lead, 78-76, early in overtime, as Monaco used an 0-11 run to get the win. Donta Hall made free throws and Mike James buried the go-ahead jumper in a one-on-one isolation play against Mario Hezonja. 

James, Lee step up in crunch time

James found Paris Lee for a critical triple, and soon connected with Hall for a high-flying alley-oop slam. Monaco managed to keep UNICS scoreless for almost 3 minutes in overtime, and James made things happen with the basketball in his hands. 

In a thriller that needed overtime to determine the winner, AS Monaco stayed undefeated in its first Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season by downing UNICS Kazan 80-88 on the road on Friday. 

Monaco downs UNICS in OT thriller, 80-88

Monaco improved to 2-0 in the standings while UNICS dropped to 0-2. Donta Hall led the winners with 16 points. Mike James added 14, Paris Lee 12, Brock Motum 11 and Danilo Andjusic 10. Mario Hezonja led UNICS with 17 points. John Brown added 14, Lorenzo Brown had 13 while Isaiah Canaan and Andrey Vorontsevich each had 10 for the hosts. An outstanding Andjusic allowed Monaco to get a 15-18 lead at the end of the first quarter. John Brown and Lorenzo Brown fueled a 7-0 run that put UNICS ahead, 32-31, but Donatas Motiejunas and Rudy Demahis – who hit a buzzer-beating three from beyond midcourt – restored a 35-39 Monaco edge at halftime. Hezonja scored 10 points in the third quarter, getting help from John Brown and Canaan to put UNICS in charge, 58-50, after 30 minutes. Leo Westermann, Motum and Hall allowed Monaco to get a 72-73 lead with a minute left. Hezonja scored down low and James split foul shots to send the game to overtime, 74-74. James, Hall and Lee made the difference in crunch time. 

 Andjusic got Monaco going with a jumper that Vorontsevich bettered with back-to-back triples for a 6-2 UNICS lead. Andjusic and Lorenzo Brown traded jumpers and Rob Gray buried an off-balance shot for an 8-6 score. Dmitri Uzinskii dunked but Gray and a red hot Andjusic made Monaco regain a 10-11 edge. Lorenzo Brown scored off a steal but Jerry Boutsiele and Andjusic kept their team ahead, 13-16. James hit a floater that Canaan matched but Monaco was still up 15-18 after 10 minutes.

Hall scored down low early in the second quarter. Jarrell Brantley and Motum exchanged three-pointers and James banked in a five-meter shot for a 18-25 Monaco lead. John Brown rescued UNICS with a backdoor layup and followed Marco Spissu's triple with a jumper that tied it at 25-25. Westermann and Motum fueled a 0-6 Monaco run before John Brown and Lorenzo Brown restored a 32-31 UNICS edge. Motiejunas scored around the basket, Lee found his first points and Demahis buried a 15-meter prayer to give Monaco a 35-39 lead at halftime. 

 Hezonja, who had been scoreless until then, had 6 quick points to tie it at 41-41. Tonye Jekiri and Boutsiele exchanged layups and a red-hot Hezonja struck from beyond the arc at 46-43. Lorenzo Brown hit a jumper, getting help from John Brown and Spissu to make it 54-47. Paris Lee rescued Monaco with a three-pointer but John Brown scored again and Canaan beat the third-quarter buzzer with a transition layup for a 58-50 UNICS margin after 30 minutes.

Motum stepped up with a put-back layup early in the fourth quarter and followed Hall's alley-oop dunk with a three-point play to bring Monaco within 60-57. Westermann scored in the low post and added a driving layup to tie, 61-61. Hezonja and James traded bombs from the arc, then Hall's basket inside completed Monaco's comeback, 64-66. Vorontsevich hit a jumper, Motum answered with a jump-hook and Canaan tied it again, 68-68. Vorontsevich banked in a close shot that Lee improved with a triple. John Brown nailed a jumper, Hall erased that with a tip-in and Hezonja gave UNICS a 74-73 lead with 46 seconds remaining. Monaco got the ball back and James drew a foul with 1.3 seconds left. He split attempts, grabbed his own rebound and missed again at the buzzer sending the game to overtime tied 76-76. 

In overtime. John Brown hit a jumper and Lorenzo Brown matched James's stop-and-pop floater with a driving layup, good for a 78-76 UNICS lead. Hall hit free throws and James added a five-meter jumper, as UNICS struggled to score when it mattered most. Lee took over with a three-pointer that made the hosts call timeout, 78-83, with 1:31 left. Hall took over with a wild alley-oop that sealed the outcome, 78-87, in the final minutes. 

Olympiacos Piraeus and Real Madrid have four titles and four runner-up finishes between them over the last decade, and now they are meeting the challenge of upholding winning traditions while changing on the fly.

Game of the Week: Olympiacos and Real, loyal to their legacies

Each owns two of the last 10 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague titles, not to mention pairs of runner-up finishes, thanks to their mutual dedication to roster stability.

But after Olympiacos Piraeus and Real Madrid each saw an iconic player retire from their ranks last summer, both are very much changing on the fly as they meet up on Friday in Greece for the Game of the Week in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague.

Olympiacos debuted three players in its starting lineup last week – Tyler Dorsey, Moustapha Fall and Thomas Walkup – as it rounded on visiting Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz for a double-take 75-50 victory, the team's first on opening day since 2018.

Real also had a trio of newcomers for its Round 1 tipoff – Adam Hanga, Nigel Williams-Goss and Guerschon Yabusele – and registered an equally impressive 82-69 debut home win against none other than defending champion Anadolu Efes Istanbul.

After tonight, one of them will feel even more confident about its off-season moves by starting the season 2-0 when, looking at the schedule just a couple of weeks ago, either could have been projected at 0-2. Of such inspired starts are new beginnings forged.

But, different though both teams may appear, they have also preserved the ethos of continuity that served them so well over the last decade.

Starting on the benches, Georgios Bartzokas and Pablo Laso will always be linked by their first meeting ever, in the 2013 championship game, a first for each in the EuroLeague. Real led by 17 points after 10 minutes of that game, but Olympiacos scored 90 over the last three quarters to win 100-88 and repeat as champion.

Despite the retirement of Vassilis Spanoulis, three players from that double-title team – Kostas Sloukas, Kostas Papanikolaou and Georgios Printezis – still wear the Olympiacos jersey. Even though Sloukas, like Bartzokas, left and returned, such continuity almost a decade later is rare – except for in Madrid.

In 2015, Real took its revenge on Olympiacos in that season's title game, winning the club's first EuroLeague crown in 20 years at home in the Spanish capital. It was Real's third consecutive try, and on that night, no one was stopping the Spaniards, just as three years later Laso's charges would raise the trophy again.

Still wearing Real white since that 2013 championship game loss to Olympiacos are Sergio Llull and Rudy Fernandez, with Felipe Reyes having retired in June after 16 seasons with the club and Jaycee Carroll still waiting in the wings for a possible return after 10 in a row in the Spanish capital.

If then, as they say, the more things change, they more they stay the same, Olympiacos and Madrid are working on a balance between the two that insists upon continued competitiveness. In this narrative, there are no rewards for tanking, not that either of these clubs would contemplate such a thing anyway. Their pride, ambition and respect for their fans are too great for that.

Their only option when faced with the inevitable – an aging collection of stars – is to rewrite their stories of success. Edit here, embellish there, but start the new episode without throwing out the old script. In other words: honor the tradition that brought them here.

A rock-solid sense of self helps, which both Olympiacos and Real have down pat. The first two teams to play a game in the new EuroLeague back in the fall of 2000 remain loyal to their legacies and to the league they represent. Win or lose tonight, or in any season, they can be counted on to always strive to compete at the highest level. As a fan of basketball, you can't ask for anything more.

Olympiacos Piraeus v Real Madrid (2021-10-08T18:00:00.000Z)

For the second week in a row,  small forward Mateusz Ponitka led Zenit St Petersburg in assists.

Ponitka, Frankamp stepped up for Zenit

When a team loses its presumptive starting point guard to injury on the eve of the start of the season, it could spell trouble. However, Zenit St Petersburg has overcome the absence of Shabazz Napier by getting the campaign underway with back-to-back road wins.

In Thursday's 64-70 victory at Zalgiris Kaunas, guards Jordan Loyd and Billy Baron combined for 30 points and the team had twice as many assists (18) as turnovers (9). A big reason for that was the play of small forward Mateusz Ponitka, who tallied 6 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal and 3 turnovers while playing a team-high 26 minutes. It marked the second week in a row in which Ponitka paced Zenit in assists after dishing 4 in Round 1's road win at UNICS Kazan.

Ponitka, Frankamp stepped up for Zenit | Turkish Airlines EuroLeague

How his team has responded to playing without Napier, who will be making his Turkish Airlines EuroLeague debut when he returns, was a topic addressed by Coach Xavi Pascual in the post-game press conference in Kaunas.

"We are working hard with a lot of players in this position. Conner Frankamp opened the game very well. After that [Dmitry] Kulagin helped us also. Some minutes with Baron, some minutes with [Mateusz] Ponitka, with Loyd. I think this is something that we are working on," Pascual said. “When one player is injured, all the players must make one step up and to be ready to help in other things and all the team reacts very well. This is why at least we can compete in all the games until now.”

Loyd was the night's big star with 8 of his game-high 19 points coming in the fourth quarter. Nevertheless, Loyd and Baron were always expected to be Zenit's scorers alongside Napier, who is first and foremost a playmaker. The contributions of Ponitka, Frankamp and Kulagin have been incredibly valuable.

Frankamp started together with Loyd in the backcourt and finished with 3 points, 3 assists and 3 steals without any turnovers in 11 minutes. Kulagin added 1 assist and 2 steals in 15 minutes off the bench.

The production of that trio not only gave Zenit a good-as-gold road win, but reduces any pressure on the club and Napier to rush his return. Zenit will not play its first home game until Round 4 – it visits CSKA Moscow first on Tuesday – when it faces FC Bayern Munich. However, despite a tough schedule that handed Zenit four road games in the first five rounds, Coach Pascual's men have come together, are playing excellent defense and now know that they have great depth in the backcourt and the wings that could make this team a very dangerous opponent going forward.

Zalgiris Kaunas v Zenit St Petersburg (2021-10-07T17:00:00.000Z)