Panathinaikos downs Anadolu Efes in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague

It was a quiet end to the month of October at the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, with only two games to keep fans warm. Still, Round 6 began with some entertaining hoops action.

Panathinaikos Athens got back on the winning track on Thursday night, improving to a 3-3 record, good for ninth place in the standings. They downed a dangerous opponent in Turkish Titan Anadolu Efes Istanbul, 86 70.

Panathinaikos used their superior depth to wear down their guests. It was an overwhelming disparity with the green’s reserve popping off for a combined 27 points, compared to just four by Efes’ bench players.

The balanced offense of the hosting team resulted in five of their players scoring in double figures, more than enough to overcome the monster game of Efes’ Shane Larkin, who exploded for a game-high 28 points.

While this was a setback for Efes, they’re still in a good spot, sitting in fourth place in the standings with a 4-2 record.

In the other game, Crvena Zvezda managed to secure their second win of the season. They bested Khimki Moscow Region in what would be another upset victory of the night. They rained down 11 triples on their opponents to eventually wind up on top 90-78 at the end of the game.

Borisa Simanic and Billy Baron paced Red Star with 18 and 17 points, respectively. Combined, the two players accounted for seven of the team’s 11 3-pointers.

On Khimki’s side, Alexey Shved was noticeably quiet with a team-high 14 points. Anthony Gill came through with an 11-point, 11-rebound double-double.

Red Star still has a long road ahead of them as they need to improve on their 2-4 record. This was just the second loss for Khimki, who are currently in fifth place with their 4-2 slate.