Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv got their first win of the Israeli Winner League with a dramatic 75-73 victory over Maccabi Bazan Haifa. Ingles led Maccabi’s scorers with 14 points, and Blu added 13 points. Landesberg and Ohayon also had good games.
By Amy Samin
There’s no place like home: Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv got their first win of the Israeli Winner League with a dramatic 75-73 victory over Maccabi Bazan Haifa in front of their fans at Nokia Arena. Joe Ingles led Maccabi’s scorers with 14 points, and David Blu added 13 points. Sylven Landesberg scored 12 points, and Yogev Ohayon had an all-around good night with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Devin Smith, Alex Tyus and Yuval Naimy did not dress for the game.
Starters for Maccabi were Joe Ingles,Yogev Ohayon, Ricky Hickman, Jake Cohen, and Sofo Schortsanitis. The game got off to a slow start, with buckets from Cohen and Ohayon the only points scored in the first two minutes. A save by Sofo led to points by Ingles, and Haifa’s coach Danny Franco called for a time out, following which the visitors went on an 11-0 scoring run, 11-6 four minutes into the period. Maccabi battled back with points from Ingles, Hickman and Ohayon, tying the score at 13 with two minutes left in the quarter. The score seesawed for the remainder of the period, which ended tied at 17-17.
The game remained close as the second quarter got underway, with David Blu, James and Tyrese Rice scoring to keep Maccabi close. Haifa grabbed a small lead, but a three from the top of the arc from Sylven Landesberg (assist Sofo), and a layup by Sofo cut the deficit to one, 33-32. But the visitors went on another impressive run, and the period ended with Haifa in the lead, 46-34.
Haifa remained in control as the second half got underway, taking a 51-34 lead in the first minute. James and Ingles scored for Maccabi, and a trey from Blu at the top of the arc cut Maccabi’s deficit to single digits, 51-43 near the halfway mark. A layup by Landesberg and another classic Blu shot from the right corner kept Maccabi in the game, but the period ended with Haifa leading 60-54.
Maccabi came roaring back in the fourth quarter, as points by Ingles and James tied the score at 60 after two minutes. Points by Blu from the charity stripe gave Maccabi the lead, while Ohayon added three from downtown and Blu and James scored as well to take the score to 70-62 Maccabi with just under four minutes left in the game. Haifa woke up, going on a 7-2 run, 72-69 with just over a minute on the clock. The teams traded free throws until time ran out, and Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv defeated Maccabi Bazan Haifa 75-73.
BOXSCORE
Maccabi: Ingles 14 points, 5 rebounds; Blu 13 points, 6 rebounds; Landesberg 12 points; Ohayon 10 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists; James 9 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks; Rice 6 points; Schortsanitis 5 points; Cohen and Hickman 3 points each.
