Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv 
ASVEL Villeurbanne Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv
Made/Att
Made/Att
Made/Att
DEF OFF TOT
CM RV
FV AG
ASVEL Villeurbanne
Made/Att
Made/Att
Made/Att
DEF OFF TOT
CM RV
FV AG
Maccabi hosts ASVEL in EuroLeague season opener
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv will commence a new EuroLeague season on Thursday with a “home” game against ASVEL Villeurbanne in Belgrade (9 PM local, 3 PM ET). Oded Kattash will lead a relatively new squad to his third consecutive season at the helm, and will look to start on the right foot.
The yellows are without South Sudanese center Wenyen Gabriel, who is dealing with a knee injury. To make up for his absence, Maccabi acted swiftly to add Guinean-French center Alpha Kaba on a short-term contract, and he is likely to make his Maccabi debut against a team he played for between 2017 and 2019.
The french rivals have one of the oldest rosters in the competition, but it boasts a few capable names such as EuroLeague legend Nando De Colo, former NBA big man Joffrey Lauvergne and last year leader in steals, guard Paris Lee. They also brought back guard Theo Maledon and added former Maccabi big man Tarik Black.
“The first games of the season always has some surprises in store – teams aren’t completely ready”, acknowledged head coach Oded Kattash. “We need to acclimate to Belgrade again. Playing without our fans, who are our main strength, makes for a big factor against us. There is no easy game in the EuroLeague, and this game is no different”.
Blatt-led Maccabi leave it late in win over ASVEL
A magnificent performance by Tamir Blatt propelled Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv to a win in its EuroLeague season debut, despite trailing for most of the evening. The Israeli floor general notched career-highs of 21 points, 12 assists and 36 PIR, and the yellows beat ASVEL Villeurbanne 89-82 on Thursday in a “home” game in Belgrade.
Maccabi’s renewed squad, missing newcomer Wenyen Gabriel, suffered from defensive issues for large parts of the game, giving up 52 points before the break. But Oded Kattash’s men pushed through in the second half and held the French rivals to only 11 points in the final quarter.
A 12-0 run to cap the game off was the difference maker, driven by Blatt’s shooting and court vision. A pair of alley-oop passes by the point guard to Jaylen Hoard in the space of 39 seconds sealed the deal for Maccabi, who triumphed in the season-opener for a fifth consecutive season.
Hoard scored 15 points in his EuroLeague debut, same as Jordan Loyd. Jasiel Rivero also proved pivotal in the win by filling the stat sheet with 11 points, 9 rebounds (career record), 3 steals, 2 assists and 2 blocks in 29 minutes.
Maccabi will now have a few days without a game, until they will face another French team on Wednesday – a visit to Monaco awaits.
