The Yellow & Blue close out the EuroLeague season with a road loss to the talented Russian squad. Dorsey led the scorers with 15 points. Monday: at Hapoel Jerusalem
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv hoped to conclude the EuroLeague season on a better note, but Giannis Sfairopoulos’s squad suffered a 69:86 road defeat to Zenit St Petersburg in a game that didn’t go as planned, finishing the European campaign in 13th place with 14 wins and 20 losses. On Monday, the Yellow & Blue return to the Israeli Winner League facing Hapoel Jerusalem in the capital.
Angelo Caloiaro didn’t make the trip to Russia following his newborn girl’s birth, as Othello Hunter returned to action for the first time since March 18th, playing 19 minutes contributing 3 points and 4 rebounds. Tyler Dorsey scored 15 points, Chris Jones added 11 points, while Scottie Wilbekin provided 9 points and 4 rebounds.
Game Recap:
John DiBartolomeo, Scottie Wilbekin, Oz Blayzer, Dragan Bender, and Ante Zizic started for the Yellow & Blue as Kevin Pangos, Austin Hollins, Mateusz Ponitka, Will Thomas, and Tarik Black began for the hosts.
A Pangos deep triple highlighted a 7:2 Zenit start while on the other end, Blayzer scored a tough floater, and Elijah Bryant came off the bench connecting for 5 straight points, 11:14.
Black closed the paint with 2 blocks, and with Hollins converted from the free-throw line ramping the margin to double digits, Tyler Dorsey and Chris Jones knocked down back-to-back buckets in the paint, but KC Rivers and Alex Poythress responded, keeping a 10 point advantage, 15:25.
Bender fought for an offensive board and finished two inside as Othello Hunter, who returned to the roster after sitting out the last couple of games, drilled a mid-range jumper and drew a foul resulting in one of two from the charity strike, 24:32.
Dorsey converted a three-point play after scoring over Pangos, T.J Cline knocked down a shot from behind the arc, and Blayzer scored 5 straight points cutting the edge down to 6, but Dmitry Khvostov floated in the last points of the half, 37:44.
Zizic dunked for Maccabi to start the second half, but back-to-back Russian steals led to Hollins’ easy points, which led to an early Giannis Sfairopoulos timeout. Wilbekin put the visitors on his back, scoring five points and distributing 2 assists, keeping the Yellow & Blue in the thick of things, 46:52.
Ex Maccabi Black and Thomas worked their way inside, including a Ponitka steal that led to an easy Thomas slam resulting in a 14:2 run, gaining a night-high 18 point advantage heading into the final 10 minutes, 48:66.
Dorsey drilled back-to-back three-pointers, and Jones laid in two, but Pangos took control, dishing assists to Billy Baron and Andrey Zubkov while laying in two, keeping a comfortable 19 point margin, 56:75. Jones and Pangos exchanged buckets as Cline and Bryant passed by their defenders, finishing close to the basket, 67:82. Zenit completed an 86:69 home victory over Maccabi.
