Jerusalem defeated Maccabi Ashdod 92-82 at the PAIS Arena thanks to a stellar effort by up and coming point guard Tamir Blatt. The son of former Maccabi Tel Aviv, Cleveland Cavaliers and current Olympiacos Coach David Blatt was a dominant force throughout the 40 minutes with 16 points and 8 assists for an efficiency rating of 23. In addition to Blatt, Bar Timor clocked in 14 points, Tashawn Thomas recorded a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds while Josh Owens scored 12 points and grabbed 9 boards. Mark Tollefsen scored 28 points and Nimrod Levi chipped in with 17 points in the loss.

Maccabi Tel Aviv took out Nes Ziona 86-74 at Yad Eliyahu after holding the visitor’s to just 26 second half points. Alex Tyus scored 8 of his 21 points in the final frame as the yellow-and-blue pulled away in the 4th quarter to take the win. The first half saw coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos’s squad hit 10 triples as Maccabi took a 48-46 lead after twenty minutes. Daequan Cook with 17 points and Talib Zanna with 15 points tried to keep the game close for Nes Ziona but the host’s depth was too much for Nadav Zilberstein’s team.

Nahariya shocked Holon 88-77 on the road to pick up a huge win in their relegation battle. Arik Alfasi’s northern squad took a 1-point 34-33 lead into half-time and outplayed the host’s over the last twenty minutes to record the victory. Terry Allen scored 20 points and Myke Henry added 18 points in the win while Amit Simhon and Corey Walden each dropped 19 points in the defeat.

Hapoel Beer Sheva dismantled struggling Maccabi Rishon Le’Zion 77-53 in the southern capital. Rami Hadar’s tight defense gave up only 20 points to Rishon over the opening half as the host’s grabbed an 18 point advantage at the break to cruise to the victory. Veteran guard Chanan Colman led the way with 19 points and Jakim Donaldson recorded a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Bnei Herzliya recorded their first win since December when they defeated Hapoel Gilboa/Galil 95-81 in the Galilee. The host’s held a 47-44 lead at halftime and it looked like Herzliya was headed for their 13th loss in a row, but Jerome Dyson with 25 points and James Robinson with 23 points began scoring at will to grab the much needed victory for Arik Shivek’s squad. Greg Whittington scored 19 points and Ian Miller added 18 points in the loss.

Hapoel Eilat dropped Hapoel Tel Aviv 85-76 in the Red Sea city as Elijah Bryant with 17 points and Suleiman Braimoh with 16 points led the way for the victory over the Reds. Tomer Ginat was the high scorer for Tel Aviv as the Israeli international scored 19 points.