Two of the Greens' star players came to the fore in Round 2
Lessort and Nunn shined again at new-look OAKA
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Regular Season
Round 2 of 34
Group Regular Season
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New season, same protagonists for Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens. On Thursday night, 2023-24 All-EuroLeague First Team stars Mathias Lessort and Kendrick Nunn stole the spotlight once again, this time at the new-look OAKA.
Playing for the first time this season on the impressive new floor of the renovated arena, the reigning champions defeated FC Bayern Munich 94-79, improving to 2-0 in the process.
After netting 14 points on the road at ALBA Berlin last week, Lessort looked dominant in the paint back on Panathinaikos’s home court. The 29-year-old center recorded a game-high 22 points, going 9 for 11 from inside the arc and 4 for 6 from the charity stripe. He also collected 6 rebounds and drew 4 fouls for a PIR of 27.
“The arena was amazing,” Lessort told EuroLeague TV after the game. “It’s the first time we’re playing in this gym. We practiced yesterday for the first time and it was a great thing.”
The man who got Panathinaikos going in the first quarter was Nunn, who scored 10 of his team’s 25 points to set the tone. Nunn finished the game with 17 points, but more importantly, he recorded a game-high 7 assists to tie his career-high mark.
Panathinaikos may have scored 94 points on Thursday night, but it was its defense that closed things out in the final quarter. Bayern responded with a late run in the third and brought itself within 66-60 in the opening stages of the fourth. Yet, Panathinaikos’s hustle on defense forced 5 Bayern turnovers, allowing the hosts to get valuable extra possessions on the other end.
“That’s the way basketball should be played,” Lessort added. “You got to give your heart, you got to put effort on the court. We’ve got a really talented team, but talent is not enough. You don’t win all the games with talent. Sometimes the game is going to be ugly, but if you put effort all the time, the talent will be there and the result will come.”
Nunn and Lessort have combined for 69 points in the first two rounds of the 2024-25 EuroLeague season. Panathinaikos may boast an extremely talented roster, full of resources and versatility, but the aforementioned duo is expected to steal the limelight again this season. The reigning champions play away at Paris Basketball on Tuesday, with Nunn and Lessort preparing themselves for more showtime action next week.