Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv lost for the second straight time to Hapoel Eilat, 92-79 in game 4 of the Israeli Winner Sal League semifinal series. The fifth and deciding game will take place in Tel Aviv on Wednesday. Cohen led Maccabi’s scorers with 16 points.
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By Amy Samin
Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv lost for the second straight time to Hapoel Eilat, 92-79 in game 4 of the Israeli Winner Sal League semifinal series which was held in Eilat. The fifth and deciding game will take place in Tel Aviv on Wednesday. Jake Cohen led Maccabi’s scorers with 16 points. Sofo Schortsanitis contributed 15 points, Nate Linhart added 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Jeremy Pargo scored 11 points.
Starters for Maccabi were Nate Linhart, Brian Randle, Jeremy Pargo, Alex Tyus, and Yogev Ohayon. The hosts looked strong in the early minutes of the game, running to 9-2 in the first three minutes. Linhart scored from downtown to break their momentum, while Sofo Schortsanitis and Jake Cohen combined to put Maccabi within one with three and a half minutes on the clock, 15-14. Eilat reopened their lead, but triples from Cohen and Linhart ended the period with Maccabi trailing 25-22.
Eilat continued to dominate in the second quarter, reaching 31-24 after two minutes. Points in the paint from Cohen and Tyus, along with a three pointer by MarQuez Haynes, cut Maccabi’s deficit to two, but Eilat opened it up again, 38-31 with four and a half minutes left in the half. The hosts extended their lead to thirteen, but Linhart, Sofo, and Pargo trimmed that to six, and the half ended with Maccabi down 47-41.
The third quarter picked up where the second left off, with the home team controlling the tempo and scoring easily. Sofo, Pargo, and Tyus scored but Eilat kept pace, 54-48 halfway through the period. Buckets by Linhart and Randle, and two treys by Cohen from the top of the arc weren’t enough for Maccabi as Eilat cruised to 74-60 heading into the fourth quarter.
Eilat’s lead grew to 18 before a triple by Cohen from the left corner and a steal/layup by Ohayon made it 81-70 close to the halfway mark in the final period. Pargo scored twice to put Maccabi within six, but Eilat’s Nissim was unstoppable, and in the end Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv lost to Hapoel Eilat 90-77. The semifinal series is now tied at 2-2. Game 5 will take place on Wednesday at Menorah Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv.
