By Amy Samin

Chuck Eidson, Lior Eliyahu, Sofoklis Schortsanitis, Jeremy Pargo and Doron Perkins started the game for Maccabi, while Barcelona led off with Ricky Rubio, Juan Carlos Navarro, Kosta Perovic, Erazem Lorbek, and Alan Anderson.
Perk scored first, dropping a long three as the shot clock ran out to put Maccabi up 3 – 0 after a minute and a half of play.
Sofo scored twice but Barcelona responded; after three minutes the score was 7 – 6.
Eliyahu scored twice in a row, including a slick reverse layup that made it 11 – 6, Maccabi.
Pargo drove in the lane and Eidson mailed in a special delivery from the left corner to make it a double digit lead, 16 – 6 at the five minute mark.
But former Maccabi player Terence Morris (who led Barcelona’s scorers with 19 on the night, and 5 of 9 shooting from three point range) dropped in a pair of treys to narrow the deficit to 16 – 12.
Perk responded with a three of his own from the left wing.
Points from the charity stripe kept the Spaniards close, while Eidson scored a layup and Pargo nailed a basket from downtown to finish the first quarter with Maccabi leading, 24 – 16.

Maccabi ratcheted up the intensity on defense at the start of the second quarter, forcing Barcelona into a turnover at half court with a well-executed trap. Mačvan came into the game and quickly scored, making it 28 – 16 after two minutes.
Barcelona scored twice in a row to close the gap to eight, then scored another four points before a stop and pop by Eidson at the halfway mark put Maccabi up 31 – 24.
Chuck soon followed that with a putback dunk, and a layup by Eliyahu restored the lead to double figures, 35 – 25 with four minutes left in the half.
Another three from Morris brought Barcelona close, but was answered by points from Eliyahu and Pargo.
A dunk by Fran Vazquez set the score at 39 – 30, Maccabi, going into the halftime break.

Barcelona was first on the scoreboard at the start of the third quarter, but Maccabi soon responded. A pair of three-pointers by Navarro (who finished the game with 17 points) in the first four minutes of the period brought the Spaniards within four, 46 – 42.
Pargo (assist Eidson) and Morris exchanged threes, and midway through the quarter the score was 50 – 47, Maccabi.
Richard Hendrix scored four quick points for the home team, but Morris gave his typical response, dropping in another shot from outside the arc to make it a one point game, 54 – 53.
Pargo reminded the crowd that he is also a master from downtown, scoring two three-pointers in quick succession, the second coming at the shot clock buzzer, and the period ended with Maccabi up by six, 60 – 54.

The visitors came out strong at the start of the fourth quarter, taking the lead for the first time after two and a half minutes, 63 – 61.
Sofo tied the score a minute and a half later, but Navarro and company quickly retook the lead.
Five straight points and excellent defense by Sofo got Maccabi back in the game, tying the score at 68 with four and a half minutes left in the period.
Those final minutes were played mostly from the foul line, and a key foul by Barcelona with 1:4 seconds remaining resulted in two points by Perkins from the foul line to tie the score at 73, sending the game into overtime.

Vazquez and Navarro still looked sharp at the start of the extra period, going on a 6 – 1 scoring run that gave them some breathing room.
David Blu downed a clutch catch-and-shoot on the right wing to keep Maccabi close, 79 – 77 after a minute and a half.
The Spaniards responded, and Eliyahu fouled out of the game (and was quickly followed by Perk).
A pair of free throws by Rubio made it 85 – 79 with just over a minute left.
A putback by Blu and a bucket off the glass by Eidson weren’t enough to stop the reigning European champions, and the game ended with Regal FC Barcelona defeating Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv 92 – 85 and securing first place in Group F.

Box Score:

Maccabi: Pargo 19 points, 5 rebounds; Schortsanitis 16 points, 6 rebounds; Eidson 13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists; Perkins and Eliyahu 12 points, 5 rebounds each; Blu 5 points; Hendrix 4 points, 9 rebounds; Pnini and Mačvan 2 points each.

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