Thanks to an incredible 32 points in the third quarter, Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv defeated Hapoel Eilat on the road, 86-67 in round 21 of the Israeli Winner Sal League. Mekel (16 points) was named game MVP
Share Article
By Amy Samin
Thanks to an incredible 32 points in the third quarter, Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv defeated Hapoel Eilat on the road, 86-67. Gal Mekel (16 points, 9 assists) led five players in double figures: Taylor Rochestie scored 14 points, Dragan Bender added 11 points and 4 blocks, Trevor Mbakwe (10 rebounds) and Sylven Landesberg scored 10 points each.
Starters for Maccabi were Itay Segev, Guy Pnini, Gal Mekel, Sylven Landesberg,, and Trevor Mbakwe. Maccabi ran to 8-2 in the first three minutes thanks to points by Pnini, Landesberg, and Mekel, but Eilat responded quickly with seven straight that gave them a 9-8 lead. Despite a nice dunk by Mbakwe, the hosts continued to control the tempo and the period ended with Eilat holding a 20-17 lead.
Points from downtown by Yogev Ohayon tied the score at 20 in the first minute of the second quarter. The home team saw that three and raised it, scoring six quick points to open up a nice lead. The difference hovered in that range for much of the quarter; with three minutes left in the half Maccabi trailed 30-24. A three by Mekel and points in the paint by Ike Ofoegbu cut Maccabi’s deficit to one and the half ended with the score 32-31.
Ohayon and Landesberg combined to give Maccabi a 35-32 lead two minutes into the second half. Dragan Bender started sinking his shots and together with Mekel from outside the arc put the yellows’ lead into double digits, 47-36 in the middle of the quarter. Mbakwe added points in the paint and Bender hit another triple to put the lead at twenty. Meanwhile, Maccabi’s defense held the hosts to only twelve points, and the score stood at 63-44 going into the final period.
A trey by Rochstie and points from Dagan Yivzori started the fourth quarter, making it 70-49 with seven minutes left in the game. Eilat managed to put together 6 straight points and cut Maccabi’s lead to fifteen halfway through the period. Bender and Mbakwe scored in the paint to put the lead back over twenty, 76-55. Yivzori and Landesberg added more points from three point range and the game ended with an 86-67 victory for Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv over Hapoel Eilat.
