Hapoel Holon just slipped by Hapoel Galil Elyon 90-89 as Tyrus McGee hit all of his three free throws with under a second remaining to take a 2-0 series lead. Guy Goodes squad raced out to a quick double digit lead as Joe Ragland, Chris Johnson and Steve Zack paced the visitors, but Nimrod Levi and Bryce Washington lit up the scoreboard in the second half to snatch an 89-87 lead with 24 seconds left in the game. DJ Kennedy could have sealed the deal but missed his last shot from the charity stripe and a late foul call was whistled on Chavaughn Lewis which led to McGee’s trio of free throws to win the game.

Ragland led the way with 27 points, Johnson added 15 points and Zack chipped in with 12 points in the victory. Levi scored 27 points, Kennedy scored 21 points and Washington added 12 points in the loss.

“We almost lost this game due to our fourth quarter,” Holon coach Guy Goodes began. “We weren’t as focussed as we could have been and Nimrod Levi had a great second half but we did what we had to do in this game. Joe has been dominant for quite some time thanks to his experience and he is our engine.

“I am very proud of the players as to how we came back in this game and we gave it our all on the court,” Galil Elyon coach Barak Peleg said. “This has been the story of our season and I am proud of the players. Even though we were down by 17 points the game came down to the small details along with the referee’s whistles.”

“It was a hard fought game and they can back but we showed character and showed grit” game MVP Joe Ragland said following the game. “We stepped up and I was being aggressive, attacked and made plays for my team. It’s go time and all of these games are important at this time of the season.”