Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv defeated Hapoel Eilat 87-80 and won the 2015 Winner Sal League Cup. Smith had 24 points and 9 rebounds, and was named tournament MVP.
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By Amy Samin
Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv defeated Hapoel Eilat 87-80 and won the 2015 Winner Sal League Cup. Devin Smith had 24 points and 9 rebounds, and was named tournament MVP. Jordan Farmar added 17 points and 8 assists, team captain Guy Pnini scored 14 points, and Taylor Rochestie contributed 10 points.
Trevor Mbakwe, Brian Randle, Jordan Farmar, Devin Smith, and Yogev Ohayon started the game for Maccabi. Maccabi got off to a 9-2 start thanks to Mbakwe, who completely dominated the paint. Eilat finally started to find the basket but Smith and Ohayon kept Maccabi on top, 14-7 halfway through the period. Eilat added a few more buckets and Taylor Rochestie buried a long three to end the first period with the score 17-13.
Eilat got off to a better start in the second quarter, quickly tying the score at 17. Mbakwe, Smith, Farmar, and Guy Pnini got Maccabi back on track, putting the yellows up 31-19 five minutes into the period. Eilat chipped away at that lead until they were only one point down, but Smith scored to give Maccabi some breathing room going into the break, 39-36.
The first three minutes of the second half saw Eilat take the lead, 46-43. A string of turnovers by Maccabi didn’t help, until Pnini sank a huge three to tie the score at 48 midway through the period. But Maccabi couldn’t create momentum, and Eilat ran to 57-50 mostly thanks to points under the basket. Rochestie and Smith combined for 12 points, and points by Ohayon at the charity stripe put Maccabi back on top, 63-60 as the period came to an end.
Smith was on fire with five straight as the second quarter got underway, but Eilat soon closed to two. Randle in the paint and Pnini with two huge three pointers increased Maccabi’s lead to 76-66. Rochestie added a nice shot from middle distance and a perfect alley oop to Randle that kept Maccabi’s lead in double digits. Eilat continued to fight though, and closed to five with a minute left in the game. Farmar drained one last triple and at that point there was no way Eilat could come back. Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv won the game 87-80 and claimed the 2015 Winner Sal League Cup.
Boxscore
Smith 24 points, 9 rebounds; Farmar 17 points, 8 assists; Pnini 14 points; Rochestie 10 points; Mbakwe 9 points; Ohayon 7 points; Randle 4 points.
