By Harrison Friedman

Hapoel Jerusalem 81-61 Bnei Herzeliya
Hapoel Jerusalem coasted past Bnei Herzeliya opening day 81-61. Amar’e Stoudamire’s first game for Jerusalem saw him knock down 3 free throws, pull down 3 offensive and 3 defensive rebounds as well as dishing out 3 assists. Hapoel’s scoring leader was Bar Timor cashing in for 19 points.

Ironi Nahariya 93-97 Maccabi Tel Aviv
Maccabi Tel Aviv edged out a win at Ironi Nahariya 97-93 in overtime. Andrew Goudelock’s 21 points plus a three right before the end of regulation time along with Guy Pnini’s 14 points with two clutch threes late in the game helped send the contest to overtime and helped keep Maccabi Tel Aviv afloat to win the game.

Maccabi Rishon Le’Zion 66-60 Hapoel Eilat
Hapoel Fattal Eilat fell to Maccabi Rand Media Rishon Le’Zion 66-60. The Maccabi win was fueled by a 13 point run in the third quarter while only allowing 9 points to Hapoel. Avi Ben Chimol was Maccabi’s leading scorer with 11 points and shot 43% from the field.

Hapoel Holon 77-61 Hapoel Gilboa Galil
Hapoel Unet Holon cleared out Hapoel Gilboa Galil 77-61. Unet Holon had a team scoring effort of Khalif Wyatt, Darion Atkins, Shlomi Harrush and Paul Delaney all scoring in double figures. Harush’s 19 points and 7/10 shooting made this an easy victory against Murphy Holloway’s dominant 20 points and 10 rebound performance.

Maccabi Ashdod 90-69 Maccabi Kiryat Gat
Maccabi Kaplan Ashdod blew past Maccabi Kiryat Gat 90-68. Kaplan Ashdod’s point guard Daniel Ewing dropped 25 points and went 7/9 from the three point line as all in all it was good shooting night for Maccabi Kaplan Ashdod as they shot 47%. Sloppy ball handling was a noticeable weakness for Kiryat Gat as they committed 13 turnovers.