Hapoel Tel Aviv got by Maccabi Raanana 89-72 thanks to fine play by Tyler Ennis in what was a tough contest at the Metrowest Arena that also saw Tomer Ginat having to go to the hospital with an apparent shoulder injury. After a tight first half in which Joaquin Szuchman, Yotam Hanochi and Jase Townsend led the way for the hosts, Ennis along with Ginat and Johnathan Motley as well as Ish Wainright made their shots to pull away and take the win.

Ennis scored 15 points while Motley and Tai Odiase each scored 12 points a piece in the win as Hanochi scored 22 points and Townsend put in 14 points in the loss.

Joaquin Szuchman drained a pair of 3-pointers and Yotam Hanochi also scored for Maccabi Raanana while Tai Odiase and Bar Timor paced Hapoel Tel Aviv but points from Jase Townsend helped the hosts to a 23-17 lead after ten minutes of play. Townsend went from the outside and inside while Tomer Ginat did the same and then added another pair of baskets to help the reds to a 37-36 advantage at halftime.

Hassan Diarra and Elijah Bryant traded triples to begin the third quarter, Ish Wainright knocked down a pair of 3-pointers, Tyler Ennis and Hanochi also went from deep while Guy Palatin and Johnathan Motley joined the 3-point party to give Dimitrios Itoudis’s team a 64-55 lead after thirty minutes of action. Motley hit a jumper get the final frame underway, Itay Segev dunked, Nate Laszewski came back with points but the duo of Segev and Motley continued to score to take the victory.

Hapoel Tel Aviv Head Coach Dimitrios Itoudis gave his thoughts on the win, “We started a bit rusty but when we caught our rhythm we realized how the game should be played and we gave up 23 points in the first quarter but after that we gave up under 20. We had many assists, 28 and some you couldn’t see as there were extra passes as well. The opponent tried to use a zone defense to slow us down but eventually we ended up with close to 90 points.”

Maccabi Raanana Head Coach Shai Segalovich spoke about the game, “We prepared for this game very well and we were able to keep ourselves with Hapoel Tel Aviv in the first half but when they started to get confidence in their shooting they continued to score and we had trouble trying to keep up. They have so many tools and you can go head to head with them but it’s not easy.”

Itay Segev summed up the win, “We played well in the second half and you can see how much depth we have if it’s one player at the small forward or power forward or playing with three guards. It’s incredible to be a part of this team. I’m here for the team to succeed and that’s what is most important for me. Whatever is in my power I’ll do to my best abilities.”

Kiryat Ata defeated Bnei Herzliya 113-101 in an end to end battle that saw the hosts come out on top thanks to having a half a dozen players scoring in double digits with Bodie Hume leading the way. Hume scored 25 points, Noah Locke added 20 points and Yuval Hochstader scored 16 points in the win while Max Heidegger scored 26 points and Chinanu Onuaku put in 17 points in the loss.

Hapoel HaEmek downed Hapoel Beer Sheva 90-81 after mounting a comeback having been down 31-12 in the second quarter to take the home win. Kyler Edwards scored 25 points while Kadin Shedrick, Niv Misgav and Elijah Childs all had 11 points in the victory. CJ Elleby scored 24 points and Cody Demps put in 21 points in the loss.