By Amy Samin

The finish line is in sight: Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv has qualified for the final in the Lotto League championship after dominating Maccabi Offici Rishon Lezion for 40 straight minutes, coming away with a 100 – 77 victory. Jeremy Pargo led all scorers with 17 points, and was one of six players to score in double figures. Long-time veteran and team captain Derrick Sharp and rookie Sean Labanowski both contributed points to the win. In the final on Thursday, Maccabi will face Hapoel Gilboa Galil, who defeated Hapoel Jerusalem in the other semi-final game.

Coach David Blatt gave the nod to Pargo, David Blu, Guy Pnini, Chuck Eidson, and Sofoklis Schortsanitis, while Rishon Lezion’s starters were Dwayne Mitchell, Isaiah Swann, Nitzan Hanochi, Raymar Morgan, and Igor Nesterenko. Maccabi opened the game defensively as they meant to go on, forcing a shot clock violation on Rishon on their first possession. The offense was a perfect match at the other end of the court, as Pargo kicked things off with one of his classic bombs from outside the arc. After two minutes, Pnini broke the game open with two straight three-pointers that made it 11 – 2. Pargo served up another three, and Eidson’s steal-to-dunk brought the crowd to its feet and the score to 18 – 2. Meanwhile, the demon defense of Maccabi was out in force; Rishon Lezion didn’t score their second basket of the game until there were only four minutes left in the period. Maccabi punished that bucket with a steal by Pnini, who passed to Lior Eliyahu, who dished back to Pnini for the three from the right corner: 23 – 4 Maccabi. Eliyahu added a basket and one, and Richard Hendrix dropped in a bucket to make it 28 – 9 with two minutes left in the quarter. By the time the clock had wound down on the first period, Eliyahu and Hendrix had scored again and Maccabi led 32 – 13.

Co-captain Tal Burstein got things started in the second quarter with a shot off the glass, but Mitchell and Aaron McGhee soon responded for Rishon Lezion. Eidson followed up with a stop and pop for two and a dish to Sofo in the paint; after three minutes Maccabi’s lead stood at twenty, 38 – 18. Sofo, Eliyahu and Eidson scored at will, while Maccabi’s tough defense had Rishon racking up turnovers instead of points for two minutes; in one play, Eidson dove into the courtside seats while stopping a pass. Pnini served up two assists to Blu, and he and Burstein completely disrupted the Rishon offense. Mitchell’s two at the buzzer didn’t do much to improve his team’s situation, and the teams went into the halftime break with Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv leading 51 – 28.

Whatever Rishon Lezion coach Effi Birenboim told his team during the break seemed to light a fire under them, though only a small one. In the first half of the third quarter Rishon outscored Maccabi 11 – 7, until two from the charity stripe by Milan Mačvan made it 60 – 42. The Serbian, joined by Pargo and Burstein, went on to score nine unanswered points, including a perfect three from the corner by Mačvan, putting Maccabi up by 27, 69 – 42 with three minutes left in the period. Pargo added another three from downtown and Mačvan scored five more points to set the score at 79 – 52 at the end of the third period.

Tired of being thwarted in the paint, Rishon Lezion tried their luck from outside the arc, but it was no go. Mačvan, meanwhile, scored five straight points in the first minute of the final quarter, then dished to Eidson who drained a three from the right side to make it 87 – 55. Burstein scored a bucket and one while keeping up the intensity on defense with another steal. Team captain Derrick Sharp came into the game for Eidson, while Hendrix came in for Mačvan and made his presence felt on the defensive boards, and Pnini’s fourth three-pointer of the night put Maccabi’s lead at thirty, 93 – 63 with less than five minutes left on the clock. Burstein and Sharp each added points with drives to the basket, and 18 year old Sean Labanowski scored from the foul line to wrap up the 100 – 77 victory for Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv over Maccabi Offici Rishon Lezion in the Lotto League semi-final.

Box Score:

Maccabi: Pargo 17 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals; Mačvan 15 points, 4 rebounds; Eliyahu 13 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds; Pnini 12 points, 3 assists, 3 steals; Eidson 11 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals; Burstein 11 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals; Blu 7 points; Schortsanitis 7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals; Hendrix 4 points, 5 rebounds; Sharp 2 points; Labanowski 1 point.

www.samintranslations.com