Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv dreamed of being the team that would stop the stunning run of Paris, which had led them to the top of the EuroLeague. But in reality, the yellow team (who this time played in white) learned firsthand why the French team took the competition by storm.
First-place Paris defeated Maccabi 93-81 in Belgrade – their ninth consecutive win – and dropped the Israeli champions to a 4-9 record. Levi Randolph finished as Maccabi’s top scorer with 14 points, while Jalen Hoard, Marial Shayok, and Rokas Jokubaitis each scored 12 points. Tamir Blatt returned to action after a short injury break, providing 3 points and 7 assists.
The EuroLeague’s November MVP, T.J. Shorts, scored 22 points and dished out 8 assists. Thiago Splitter’s team played fluent basketball and bombarded the Maccabees with three-pointers – including 10 in the first half. Maccabi fought back, closing a 21-point deficit to just 8 in the final quarter, but could not do much more than that.
On Thursday, Oded Kattash and his players will host Barcelona in Belgrade for the second part of the double week, hoping for a better outcome there.
