Bnei Herzliya outlasted Hapoel Gilboa Galil 94-82 as Chris Babb starred with 33 points up in the Galilee. Both squads came into the contest shorthanded, but Oren Aharoni’s team grabbed an early 22-14 lead after the first quarter and never looked back to chalk up the victory. In addition to Babb’s 33 points, Shawn Dawson and Chinanu Onuaku each added 20 points while Quinton Hooker recorded a double-double with 17 points and 10 assists. Michael Brisker led Guy Kaplan’s team with 23 points, Sacha Killeya-Jones scored 20 points and London Perrantes chipped in with 17 points in the loss.

“This wasn’t easy and the league is tight,” Herzliya coach Oren Aharoni said. “Gilboa played well including Michael Brisker but the guys were able to get the baskets when we needed them. This is a marathon and we have to take it game by game.”

The game MVP Chris Babb added, “Our fans did a great job and we got going early. We have been sticking together and we had a rough starch and we are growing. Shams stepped up and everyone did their part. As for Chief Onuaku, he’s a killer and playing really well. When he plays well, we play well.”

“We needed a bit more on the defensive side and we turned over the ball over too much” Gilboa coach Kaplan explained. “We stayed in the game and put in an effort, but we have to do more in terms of pride and spirit.”

Hapoel Eilat sunk Hapoel Galil Elyon 94-87 by the Red Sea city as Ariel Beit Halachmi’s squad broke a 61-61 tie after three quarters to take the win. Justin Patton with 28 points, 9 rebounds and an efficiency rating of 45, Roi Huber with 20 points and 9 assists and Joaquin Szuchman with 14 points, 6 boards and 4 helpers all came up big down the stretch to cancel out Ike Iroegbu’s 20 points and Chavaughn Lewis’s 16 points to take the win.