Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated Elitzur Netanya 99-83, as the yellow-and-blue needed to mount a second-half comeback to take care of the upstart diamond city squad in Israeli league action.
Idan Avshalom’s Netanya team came out firing from deep, with Carlos Marshall and Ariel Isaak scoring at will, while Roie Paretzky and Kyler Edwards helped the visitors to a 48-40 lead at halftime. However, the State Cup slumber came to a quick end as the game moved into the third quarter, where Levi Randolph didn’t miss from inside or outside, finishing the period with 17 points. John DiBartolomeo, Roman Sorkin, Marial Shayok, and Will Rayman all hit their shots from deep to secure the victory.
Randolph scored 32 points, DiBartolomeo added 12 points, and Sorkin scored 10 points in the win. Marshall scored 20 points, Edwards contributed 18 points, and Paretzky added 13 points in the loss.
“What we were worried about in the first half happened after the Cup game, as we had no energy,” Maccabi coach Oded Katash began. “We also didn’t have two ball handlers in Rokas Jokubaitis and Tamir Blatt, but we pulled it together in the second half, and Levi Randolph was just superb in the third quarter. We looked a lot better in the second half.”
In Emek Izrael, Hapoel Tel Aviv crushed Hapoel Afula 99-74, as Guy Palatin helped break the game open near the end of the second quarter and continued scoring with ease into the third quarter to secure the easy win.
J’Covan Brown and Jalen Leque started strong for Hapoel Afula, but Joe Ragland ran the Hapoel Tel Aviv offense to perfection. Marcus Foster, Ish Wainright, and Noam Yaacov also contributed, but key points from Guy Palatin gave the Reds a 52-40 lead at halftime.
Palatin continued to score at will, as did Foster in the second half. Despite a valiant effort by Afula, Dimitrios Itoudis’s squad cruised to the 25-point victory. Palatin and Foster each scored 19 points, Yaacov added 13 points, and Ragland scored 11 points while dishing out 7 assists in the win. Leque and Brown each scored 15 points in the loss.
“I liked the professionalism, and we played seriously,” Itoudis said. “In the second quarter, we picked up a double-digit lead and had players coming off the bench like Oz Blayzer, and we brought it to the end very smartly. Guy knows that he brings energy, can shoot the ball pretty well, and spread the floor. He’s a team player, unselfish, can rebound, and has a good feel for the game.”
In the capital city, Hapoel Jerusalem took care of Hapoel Gilboa/Galil 85-75, as five players scored in double digits to help the Reds to victory.
Jared Harper, Yovel Zoosman, Austin Wiley, and Egor Koulechov paced Hapoel Jerusalem over the course of the first half, while Ish El-Amin, Elijah Childs, and Ben Moore countered for Gilboa/Galil. The hosts took a 47-35 lead at halftime.
Tarik Phillip started to find the basket for the capital city Reds in the second half, as Paul Scruggs and Childs countered for the visitors. However, key baskets by Chris Johnson and Wiley sealed the deal for Jerusalem.
Harper scored 17 points, Johnson added 14 points, Zoosman scored 13 points, and Wiley chipped in with 12 points in the win. Childs and El-Amin each scored 16 points, while Moore added 14 points in the loss.
Jerusalem coach Yonatan Alon spoke about the game and the challenge his team faced.
“We had a day off after the State Cup final, and when we prepared for the game, we knew that the real opponent here was going to be us after a big disappointment on Thursday, and that’s what we did.”
Up north, Kiryat Ata got by Hapoel Haifa 89-84 in overtime, as Silvio De Sousa’s monster 31-point and 10-rebound game helped the hosts to the win. De Sousa, Chris Smith, and Liam O’Reilly found points for Kiryat Ata, while Bryon Allen and Matt Coleman paced Hapoel Haifa, but the hosts led 37-36 at halftime.
De Sousa, Chris Smith and Marvin Smith opened up a gap as Eldad Bentov’s team looked to be heading towards the win, but Allen and Coleman kept the Carmel Reds close and Daniel Rosenbaum scored as time wound down to send the game to overtime all knotted up at 72-72. In overtime, De Sousa continued to pour in the points as Kiryat Ata took the 5-point win.
In addition to De Sousa’s 31 points, Chris Smith added 21 points and Marvin Smith scored 11 points in the win. Coleman scored 24 points for Haifa, Allen put in 17 points and Rosenbaum scored 10 points in the loss.
“This was a very big win for us and every one is crucial for us,” Bentov said. “We wanted to win the game in regulation time but we just weren’t focussed enough. The guys battled and while they made some mistakes they did everything to win the game as well as on the defensive side.”
Ness Ziona vs Hapoel Holon
Meanwhile, Ness Ziona defeated Hapoel Holon 72-60 as Ricky Lindo, Bryce Brown, Yair Kravits and key points from Jake Van Tubbergen wrapped up the win for the hosts.
Brown scored 17 points, Lindo added 15 points and Van Tubbergen chipped in with 13 points in the win. Alston scored 17 points and Davis scored 15 points in the loss.
Also, Hapoel Beersheba walloped Maccabi Ramat Gan 104-84 as the Southern Reds broke a 24-24 game open in the second quarter thanks to sharp shooting by Ron Zipper, who went 5-for-5 from beyond the arc to cruise to the win.
Zipper scored 23 points, Cody Demps added 21 points, Iverson Molinar put in 19 points and dished out 9 assists while Justin McKoy scored 17 points in the victory. Kendale McCullum scored 21 points, Amin Stevens put in 15 points and Isaiah Miles scored 13 points for Ramat Gan in the loss.
Finally, Bnei Herzliya got by Hapoel Galil Elyon 85-79 in a tight game that saw Chris Silva shine in the final frame to bring home the win.
Silva scored 24 points, John Meeks added 18 points and Xavier Sneed put in 15 points in the victory, while Marcus Carr scored 19 points and Lior Carreira chipped in with 14 points in the loss.