By Aaron Glenn

Hapoel Jerusalem 89-78 Bnei Herzliya

Lior Eliyahu and Hapoel Jerusalem took care of business against Bnei Herzliya with a win at home. Eliyahu had 19 points, grabbed 9 rebounds, and dished out 7 assists. Hapoel took advantage of the many free throw opportunities it had shooting 22/25 from the strike. Jerusalem also dished out 28 assists on the night. James Singleton led Herzliya with 15 points and 13 rebounds.

Hapoel Holon 88-76 Ironi Nahariya

Will Clyburn and Hapoel Holon pulled away in the third quarter to get an easy win over Nahariya. Clyburn had a monster game playing all 40 minutes while scoring 27 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Shlomi Harush gave a huge offensive spark in this game hitting 4 three pointers and scoring 18 points. A difference maker in this game was Holon’s 15 offensive rebounds, which led more chances to score. Cameron Clark led the way for Nahariya with 19 points and 7 rebounds in the loss.

Maccabi Tel Aviv 67-59 Maccabi Haifa

In a very low scoring game, Maccabi Tel Aviv fends off Haifa in a tight game. Both teams shot very poorly from the field, but some nice Tel Aviv assists led to easy points when they needed them. The stats do not show it, but Gal Mekel led Tel Aviv with 9 points and 7 assists. Reginald Buckner led Haifa with 13 points and 8 rebounds.

Hapoel Tel Aviv 81-78 Maccabi Kiryat Gat

In a very close game Hapoel Tel Aviv was able to fight off Kiryat Gat. Jeff Allen led the way with an impressive 15 points and 15 rebounds. Nate Robinson had a great game defensively stealing the ball five times. Both teams struggled mightily from the free throw line shooting below 60%. Alando Tucker scored 20 points for Kiryat Gat.

Hapoel Eilat 90-72 Maccabi Ashdod

Hapoel Eilat routed Ashdod in this contest by 18 points. Elishay Kadir had a double-double in the game scoring 17 points while grabbing 10 rebounds, Eilat out rebounded Ashdod by 14 rebounds which led to easy second chance opportunities. Charles Thomas had a crazy game for Ashdod with 36 points in the loss.

Nes Ziona 90-89 Maccabi Rishon Le’zion

In a stunning upset, Nes Ziona beat Rishon by one in overtime. Sundiata Gaines led the way for Nes Ziona with 25 points 7 rebounds and 5 assists. Both teams struggled from behind the arc and from the free throw line. Neither team had the ability to hit the clutch late game free throws. Darryl Monroe led Rishon with 29 points and 11 rebounds in the loss.