The Yellow & Blue kept the perfect record at home as they delivered the Spanish squad their fourth straight EuroLeague loss. Scottie Wilbekin scored 14, Omri Casspi excelled as Nate Wolters tied his career-high in assists
Maccabi Fox Tel Aviv beat Valencia 76:63 as they retained their perfect record at home, on their way to a 2:2 EuroLeague record. The Yellow & Blue enjoyed another electrifying performance by their fans in the Menora Mivtachim Arena as Nate Wolters, Othello Hunter, and Omri Casspi were both fabulous in the win.
Scottie Wilbekin shined finishing the night while leading all Maccabi scorers with 14 points. Deni Avdija started for the first time in his career in a EuroLeague game, completing 16 minutes on the court with 6 points.
Scored for Maccabi: Scottie Wilbekin 14 points (4/9 from three) & 4 assists, Othello Hunter 13 points & 8 rebounds, Omri Casspi 12 points, 5 rebounds & 3 steals, Nate Wolters 10 & 9 assists, Yovel Zoosman 8 points (2/3 from three), John DiBartolomeo 7, Deni Avdija (3 rebounds) and Tarik Black (6 rebounds) 6 points each, Quincy Acy, Elijah Bryant & Tyler Dorsey played but didn’t score. Scored for Valencia: Jordan Lloyd 17, Fernando San Emeterio and Bojan Dubljevic 15 points each.
Maccabi’s winning streak stands at four games, as in the last three of them, they have been able to limit their opponents to under 70 points. On Sunday, Maccabi will host Hapoel Jerusalem in Tel Aviv as each teams come into the game undefeated in the Israeli league. On Wednesday, Zeljko Obradovic’s Fenerbahce will fly into town to face Giannis Sfairopoulos’s squad.
RECAP
Scottie Wilbekin, Nate Wolters, Omri Casspi, Tarik Black, and Deni Avidija (first career EuroLeague start) began the game in Giannis Sfairopoulos’s starting five.
Maccabi started the game over fired up with four turnovers in less than four minutes. Coach Sfairopoulos called a timeout, and the team responded well with Wolters running the show. With 10 seconds left in the first quarter, Hunter hit a big and one at the end of Maccabi’s shot clock to give the hosts a 17:9 lead. Dubljevic scored two free throws at the end of the first, 18:11 Maccabi.
At the start of the second quarter, Wolters fed Hunter twice with excellent passes, as the big man finished them both in ease to bring the Yellow & Blue’s lead up to 11. The Valencians came back slowly as they reduced Maccabi’s advantage to 21:24. Casspi returned the momentum to the Yellow & Blue, but the team couldn’t run away from the Spanish squad. Maccabi led at the half, 33:28.
Giannis Sfairopoulos’s squad came out strong out of the locker room. Avdija scored three straight points as Casspi led the charge to bring the hosts to a double-digit lead 43:33. Yovel Zoosman hit two consecutive three’s, as Wolters tied his career-high in assists to help Maccabi take a commanding 16 point lead. After three quarters, 56:44 for the Yellow & Blue.
Maccabi kept on with the momentum in the fourth with Avdija hitting a three-pointer from beyond the arc. Wilbekin joined with another three to bring the hosts lead up to 19. In the final minutes, Valencia was able to reduce the lead, but the Yellow & Blue stay undefeated at home after a convincing 76:63 win.
