Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv has taken a 2-1 lead in the best of five series against EA7 Emporio Armani Milan thanks to a 75-63 victory in Nokia Arena in Tel Aviv. Blu led Maccabi’s scorers with 16 points.
By Amy Samin
Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv defeated Armani Milan 75-63 in a thrilling game at Nokia Arena, and has taken a 2-1 lead in the best of five Top 8 series in the Euroleague. David Blu, who led Maccabi’s scorers with 16 points, was named game MVP. Ricky Hickman contributed 15 points and 6 assists, and Alex Tyus had 14 points and 8 rebounds.
Starters for Maccabi were Yogev Ohayon, Guy Pnini, Devin Smith, Ricky Hickman and Sofo Schortsanitis. The early minutes of the quarter were dominated by the visitors, who took a 7-2 lead after two minutes. A fast break layup by Hickman (steal Sofo) and four straight points by Tyrese Rice put Maccabi within two, 10-8 just past the halfway mark. David Blu added five and Alex Tyus threw down a slam off an assist by Rice to tie the score at 15, but Jerrells gave the visitors a 16-15 lead from the charity stripe to end the period.
The second quarter got underway with a putback dunk by Tyus, but the lead changed hands again as Hackett scored to put Milan back on top. Two straight buckets by Sofo made it 21-19 Maccabi after four minutes of action, but the visitors continued to respond. Another three from the right corner and a bucket by Blu made it 28-23 and opened the door for Maccabi to extend their lead, with a trey by Ohayon and points by Sofo and Hickman ending the half with the home team holding a double digit lead, 39-29.
Smith drained a three pointer from the right corner to kick off the second quarter, and Hickman and Ohayon also scored to put Maccabi’s lead at 46-31 after two and a half minutes. Blu sank another bucket from outside the arc, but points by Langford and Hackett kept Milan in the game. Smith responded with a smooth baseline drive to make it 51-37 with four and a half minutes remaining in the period. Twice Milan pulled to within eleven, but Maccabi continued to dominate, with a drive to the basket and 1 by Blu and a huge three at the buzzer by Rice to make it 61-45 after three periods.
For the first time since the first quarter, the visitors scored first but Tyus replied with two straight baskets including a nice midrange jumper that made it 65-48 Maccabi after two and a half minutes. Each time the visitors managed to score, Maccabi had a response, thanks to points by Hickman, Tyus and Pnini. With three minutes on the clock Maccabi led 72-56. Milan managed to pull within ten with a minute and a half remaining, but one last bucket by Rice gave Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv a 75-63 win over EA7 Emporio Armani Milan, putting them ahead 2 games to 1 in the best of five series. Game 4 will be played on Wednesday in Tel Aviv.
