Hapoel Beer Sheva downed Maccabi Rishon Le’Zion 70-62 thanks to a terrific second quarter that saw the Reds take advantage of the Rishon’s 25 turnovers as they never looked back to take the victory. Rishon Le’Zion jumped out to a 33-16 lead early on in the second quarter, but Beer Sheva ended the half with a 26-4 run to take a 39-37 advantage as they dominated the game following the break to take the hard earned win.

Caleb Agada led the way for Rami Hadar’s squad with 18 points in his return to action after being out injured for a couple of months, Spencer Weisz added 11 points and Amit Suss checked in with 10 points. Akil Mitchell scored 23 points for Rishon, and Golan Gutt chipped in with 12 points in the loss.

Spencer Weisz was satisfied with the victory, “I think it took awhile for us to settle into the game after not playing for three weeks due to the lockdown. Then in the second quarter, we found our rhythm as a team defensively. We are a young, energetic team with a coach that believes in our ability. We implemented his system of defensive pressure and a high-tempo game which allowed us to ultimately comeback and get a hard fought win against a good Rishon team.”

Hapoel Beer Sheva jumped out to an early 7-4 lead in the first quarter over Maccabi Rishon Le’Zion as Neta Segal nailed a corner triple for the visitors while Akil Mitchell countered for the hosts inside. Trey Lewis and Tom Maayan exchanged 3-pointers, Golan Gutt hit a pair from long distance while Darryl Monroe scored his free throws to give Rishon a 21-14 lead after ten minutes.

Mitchell added more points in the paint as did Noam Avivi while Golan Gutt drilled a corner triple to give Guy Goodes’s team a 32-16 advantage with 6:16 left in the second quarter. Natan Jurkovic and Caleb Agada scored back to back buckets then the Canadian scored another 3-pointer and Spencer Weisz added a layup to cut the score to 33-25 with 4:11 remaining in the first half. Weisz and James Banks put in points inside while Amit Suss added a 3-point play, Banks and Segal scored inside as Beer Sheva used an 18-0 (26-4) run to take a 39-37 lead at halftime.

Mitchell and Banks scored for their respective sides to get the third quarter underway, Suss went from downtown but Mitchell scored a 3-point play for Rishon as the score was knotted up at 44-44 midway through the period. Agada drilled a triple for Rami Hadar’s team and then added points from the free throw line and a layup while Griffin nailed another ball from beyond the arc as Beer Sheva went into the final frame up 56-48.

Lewis put in points for Rishon to get the fourth quarter underway, Monroe scored a jumper but Weisz scored from deep to keep Beer Sheva in front 61-56 with 4:29 left in regulation time. Banks added points in the paint, Griffin scored as well and Amir Bell added a triple and Weisz put in a 3-point play to take the 70-62 win.

Bnei Herzliya sunk Hapoel Eilat 98-84 at the Red Sea City as Sharon Drucker’s squad controlled the clash from the outset as City Clarke and Max Heidegger to record the win. Clarke scored 27 points and grabbed 9 rebounds, Heidegger scored 19 points while Terrell Parks dropped 13 points and added 9 boards. Jonathan Skjöldebrand led Ariel Beit Halachmi’s team with 18 points, Casey Prather scored 15 points and Josh Nebo put in 13 points and took down 12 rebounds in the defeat.

Max Heidegger expressed his satisfaction about the win, “I thought we played well tonight and fought hard to get a really important win for us. It was great for us to get back on the court and personally I just want to help us win in whatever way I can but I’m glad to get the opportunity to show what I can do.”

Hapoel Haifa defeated Hapoel Holon 96-85 by the Carmel Mountain as five players featured in double digits in the victory for Elad Hasin’s squad. Amit Simhon starred in the win with 22 points while gong 5/7 from beyond the arc against his former team. Keenan Evans led the Reds scorers with 23 points and 8 assists, Rakeem Buckles added 17 points and 9 rebounds, Egor Nestrenko scored 15 points and Jason Siggers chipped in with 12 points in the win. Maxim De Zeeuw led Stefanos Dedas’s team with 27 points and CJ Harris scored 21 points in the loss.

Keenan Evans talked about the victory following the game, “It feels great to get this win, but we don’t want to be too high or too low. Each game has a playoff feel. We wanted to get payback after we lost to Holon a few weeks ago.”