By Amy Samin
Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv defeated Bnei Herzliya in a tough road game, 90-80. Taylor Rochestie led Maccabi with 24 points and 6 assists. Richard Hendrix had a solid12 point, 8 rebound game, and Brian Randle and Gal Mekel (6 assists) contributed 11 points each. Sylven Landesberg and Itay Segev added 10 and 9 points, respectively.
Maccabi's starters were Devin Smith, Itay Segev, Gal Mekel, Brian Randle, and Taylor Rochestie. Maccabi started off well, running to 7-3 after two and half minutes on points by Rochestie, Randle (assist Segev), and Mekel with an and one. Herzliya woke up fast, and despite a nice alley oop between Mekel and Segev, the home team took a 10-9 lead halfway through the period. Richard Hendrix was unstoppable in the paint, and Rochestie added a triple, but Herzliya didn't let up, and after ten minutes the hosts held a 26-20 lead.
The momentum stayed with Herzliya in the second quarter as they increased their lead to 31-22 after two minutes. Maccabi's Israelis responded, and thanks to points by Dagan Yivzori, Sylven Landesberg, Mekel, and Segev, Maccabi ran 12-1 and took a 34-32 lead just past the halfway mark. Randle added a slam (assist Devin Smith) but the hosts stayed close. The teams went into the break with Maccabi down by two, 45-43.
Points by Randle and Hendrix put Maccabi back on top 49-48 two minutes into the second half. Rochestie, Mekel, and Segev scored to increase that lead to 57-52 near the halfway mark, and though the hosts managed to close to one, Maccabi rebuilt their lead with points from Rochestie. Herzliya again made it a one point game, but points by Smith in the corner made it 67-63, Maccabi heading into the fourth quarter.
The visitors kept their lead steady at five, with Segev, Smith, Ohayon, and Rochestie scoring for the yellows. More points from the same group and tough defense on the other end helped Maccabi's lead grow to 84-69 halfway through the period. Hendrix contributed a behind-the-back assist to Mekel and a putback that put the finishing touches on a 90-80 win for Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv on the road over Bnei Herzliya.