Hapoel Jerusalem defeated Hapoel Tel Aviv with a score of 98-87 in the second game of their best-of-three semifinal series, as Jared Harper shone for the capital city Reds and set up a decisive Game 3 in Tel Aviv next Tuesday.
Both teams went back and forth to begin the game as Jared Harper scored for the hosts and Bar Timor countered for the visitors.
Austin Wiley began to make an impact as Tomer Ginat also scored, but Harper, with plenty of points, along with a pair of quick baskets by Khadeen Carrington and Jeremy Morgan to close the half, ensured Jerusalem stayed ahead 49-35.
Harper and Justin Smith kept pushing hard while Marcus Foster and Ginat trimmed the lead to just four points. However, Harper sank a three-pointer and drew a foul on the play, while Carrington and Wiley continued to score effortlessly to secure the victory.
Harper scored 31 points, Carrington added 16 points, and Wiley put in 13 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Jerusalem in the win. Ginat scored 19 points, Foster put in 18 points, and Motiey scored 14 points for Tel Aviv in the loss.
'We worked hard to get that lead'
“We were leading by double digits, but the gap can be cut very easily, as we saw,” Hapoel Jerusalem coach Yonatan Alon said. “They went to a small lineup, and Marcus Foster made some big baskets. We were a bit tired, and they hit some 3-pointers with hands in their faces as well. But we worked hard to get that lead, and we were able to hold on to it.”
“Jerusalem was the better team,” Hapoel Tel Aviv bench boss Dimitrios Itoudis said. “We won three quarters, but the second quarter was a disaster with bad shots, and we gave up 29 points. They were better and we are looking ahead to Game 3. We didn’t defend well, and we will do a better job.”