"In these conditions, we executed really well"

After two weeks without basketball, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv's return to the court was a successful one beating Hapoel Gilboa/Galil 67:65 in a tight contest between two of the top-ranked teams in the Israeli Winner League. The win was significant for the Yellow & Blue as they clinched home-court advantage throughout the playoffs with two games left in the top division. On Saturday, Maccabi will host Hapoel Holon (20:30) in Menora Mivtachim Arena for another top division clash.

Scottie Wilbekin (23 points) and Ante Zizic (17 points & 7 rebounds), who was dominant in the paint, scored a total of 40 out of the 67 points on what was an understandable off night offensively after the long two-week break. However, Sfairopoulos's group continued to show why they are the first ranked defense in the league, stopping the hosts on 65 points.

"We controlled the game through our defense which was really good tonight", Summarised head coach Giannis Sfairopoulos. "Generally in the second half, we played well, obtaining a double-digit advantage, especially in the third period, allowing only 14 points. We could have won easier if we would have avoided allowing some easy buckets in the last two minutes, but we deserved to win because of our performance throughout the whole game".



The Greek coach spoke about the tough preparation heading into the contest: "We practiced only twice before the game, as we had 8 days without practices, so it was crucial the way the players came in concentrated and in these conditions we executed really well".

"We did a great job controlling the whole game", Added Ante Zizic, who finished the game with 17 points and 7 rebounds. "In the last 2:30 minutes, we lost a bit of our concentration, so in the future, we just need to stay a bit more focused as we did for the first 37 minutes"

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