Hapoel Jerusalem crushed Elitzur Netanya 100-69 as the reds cruised to the win that put them back onto the winning track in Israeli league action. Jerusalem came flying out of the gate as Nimrod Levi and Justin Smith leading the way to a 26-12 lead after the opening quarter as Austin Wiley and Cassius Winston also filled the basket to take the blowout victory. Smith scored 19 points, Winston added 16 points, Wiley put in 15 while Levi dropped 14 in the win as Otis Frazier paced Netanya with 26 points in the loss.

Hapoel Jerusalem Head Coach Yonatan Alon reflected on the victory, “It wasn’t just the win but how we won the game and how we played at home. We had the right attitude in this game and while Netanya isn’t as good as Beer Sheva and Herzliya but I told the guys you have to look in the mirror and they did.”

Netanya bench boss Netanel Dahan talked about the loss, “It was toogh to watch and even tougher to coach. We weren’t good and it’s the second game in a row that we didn’t play well both offensively and defensively. There were a few good things that occurred and I can take that from this game. For me it was special and exciting to be in the situation of being the head coach and I was optimistic heading into the game but there are no excuses.”

Khadeen Carrington looked back at the win, “It’s no secret what’s been going on in the Israeli league and we wanted to challenge ourself. It doesn’t matter who we play but how we play. If you give a team open shots they will make it some you have to make it tough. We had make the first punch.”

Or Cornelius spoke about returning to play against Jerusalem and the game itself, “I have a lot of feelings about Jerusalem and I wanted to come here and really put on a good show, but it wasn’t meant to be. There are a lot of changes in the club and most are not in our control and we are doing the best that we can. I trust that the club will do the best that they can and I’ll keep working hard.”

Bnei Herzliya downed Hapoel Holon 91-82 thanks to a dominant fourth quarter led by Elijah Stewart to notch the win. The purples held a 46-42 lead at halftime as Jordan McRae, Derick Walton Jr. and Lior Carreira paced Danny Franco’s team but Chinanu Onuaku, Daeshon Francis and Shawn Dawson all made sure to keep the game close while Stewart scored in bunches in the final frame to help Yehu Orland’s squad notch the victory. Francis scored 16 points and Dawson added 15 points while Walton Jr. scored 18 points and McRae put in 17 points in the loss.