By Amy Samin

Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv kicked off the best-of-five Israeli League playoff series against eighth ranked Barak Netanya with a 94 – 72 win at Nokia Arena. Six Maccabi players scored in double figures, with Chuck Eidson leading all scorers with 20 points, and Jeremy Pargo (10 points, 10 assists) and Richard Hendrix (14 points, 11 rebounds) claiming impressive double-doubles. The second game of the series will be played on Saturday night at 21:15 at Yeshurun Gym in Netanya.

Pargo, Lior Eliyahu, Guy Pnini, Eidson, and Sofoklis Schortsanitis started the game for Maccabi, while Shmulik Brener, Adrian Banks, Tony Washam, Chris Watson, and Romeo Travis led off for Netanya. Banks scored seven straight to put the visitors up 8 – 2 after two minutes. Points by Sofo were answered by Washam, but a three from Eidson (assist Eliyahu) put Maccabi within three, 10 – 7 after four minutes of play in the period. Richard Hendrix came into the game for Sofo and had pulled down his first rebound of the night (of 11 total, about one-third of the team’s total rebounds) within fifteen seconds. Watson, Travis and Brener all scored to give Netanya a 20 – 9 lead with about three and a half minutes left in the quarter. Pargo followed points from the charity stripe with a rebound plus coast-to-coast, and co-captain Tal Burstein contributed two from the foul line to make it 22 – 15 with about a minute and a half remaining. Washam and Banks scored for Netanya to set the score after one period at 26 – 15, Netanya.

Eliyahu and Sofo took turns scoring for Maccabi in the first four minutes of the second quarter, at which point Maccabi’s deficit was down to seven, 32 – 25. Joe Smith and Banks of Netanya reopened their team’s lead, but a cross-court pass from Pargo to David Blu for the three-pointer from the left corner kick-started Maccabi’s offense and defense. That play was followed by a steal/assist by Pargo which led to points by Eidson on the fastbreak. Pnini executed a steal/points (assist Pargo) to put Maccabi within four, 36 – 31, while the defense went on a tear, with deflections (Eidson), steals (Pnini and Hendrix) and a block (Hendrix) that completely rattled Netanya’s offense and ended up cutting the visitors’ lead to two, 38 – 36 with just under three minutes left in the half. A catch-and-shoot by Blu (assist Eidson) tied the score at 40, while Maccabi’s defense forced a shot clock violation on Netanya. Maccabi took the lead, 42 – 40 off free throws by Eidson, but a basket and one by Travis made it 43 – 42, Netanya. A drive to the basket by Pnini made it 44 – 43, but Banks scored from three point range to put the visitors ahead once again. One point from Burstein at the foul line closed out the half, with Netanya leading by the slimmest of margins, 46 – 45.

Points by Eidson and Pnini put Maccabi up 50 – 48 after just over a minute in the third quarter, and though Banks tied to score at 50 all seconds later, Maccabi again took the lead off points from Blu and never looked back. The offense served up another of their patented dazzlers, with a steal by Eidson going to Hendrix who dished to Pargo for the score, which gave the home team their biggest lead in the game to that point, 55 – 50. Washam and Watson fought to get Netanya back in the game, but another three from Blu and two straight baskets in the paint by Hendrix made it 62 – 56, Maccabi with four minutes left in the period. Burstein and Maccabi continued to fight hard on defense, and points from Eidson and Burstein gave them a 70 – 64 lead at the end of three quarters.

The final period opened with points from Banks, but a dunk by Eidson quickly restored the status quo. Points by Elton Brown and Banks were answered by six straight points by Hendrix, which were just the start of a thrilling 16 – 0 scoring run that also included a stop-and-pop for two and a three-pointer by Eidson, another steal plus coast-to-coast for Pargo, and a fadeaway by Blu. With less than three minutes left in the game, Maccabi’s lead had swelled to 90 – 70. Points by Milan Mačvan closed out the game, giving Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv a 94 – 72 win over Barak Netanya in Game 1 of the playoff series.

Box Score:

Maccabi: Eidson 20 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 steals; Hendrix 14 points, 11 rebounds, 4 steals, 2 blocks; Blu 14 points; Pargo 10 points, 10 assists, 5 rebounds; Pnini 10 points, 4 steals; Burstein 10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists; Eliyahu 7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists; Schortsanitis 5 points, 2 rebounds; Mačvan 4 points, 2 assists.

Netanya: Banks 28 points; Travis 17 points; Watson 9 points; Brown and Washam 6 points each; Brener 4 points; Smith 2 points.

After the game, head coach David Blatt said, “We didn’t start the game well. It could have been something physiological, maybe our practice yesterday was too hard; if so, that’s my fault. By the time we woke up, we were facing a deficit. I think that this team, even though it’s their first year together, showed a certain amount of maturity. To come back from such a deficit and win the game is a good thing.”

The coach did not want to discuss the upcoming game [a week from Friday] against Real Madrid in the Euroleague Final Four, saying in response to a question, “I’m not taking anything from this to the Final Four because we have another game against Netanya this coming Saturday night, before we even get to Barcelona.” Regarding the lack of time Sofoklis Schortsanitis spent on the court, Blatt noted, “He wasn’t feeling well and I decided to give him a chance to rest.”

The game’s MVP with 14 points and 11 rebounds, Richard Hendrix, said, “Netanya’s a talented team, they have a lot of very good players. This is the sixth time that we’ve played them, so we’re very familiar with each other. We started out a little flat, defensively. We didn’t play as well as we would have liked in the opening of the game, but fortunately our last three quarters were strong and we finished with the result we like to see.”

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