Israel came close to pulling off a major upset in the opening game of the second round of the EuroBasket Women Qualifiers, but ultimately fell 75-64 to Poland. Israel led for much of the contest and even built a double-digit advantage in the third quarter, but a dominant 26-9 fourth quarter by the hosts proved decisive. Alissa Baron (19 points) and Yarden Garzon (11 points) led Israel offensively, but the Blue-and-White committed 21 turnovers.

Poland enjoyed a strong start behind Klaudia Wnorowska, but Dorian Dahan Sujic and Daniel Raber kept Israel within striking distance. Dahan Sujic suffered an ankle injury and headed to the bench for treatment, but some solid minutes from Shir Tirosh, points from Eden Rotberg and a three-pointer by Garzon gave Israel an 18-17 advantage after the opening quarter.

Poland started the second quarter well, but a 5-0 Israeli run put the visitors ahead 23-22 midway through the period. The momentum continued as Baron scored five consecutive points, but Poland responded with a 6-0 run to tie the game at 28-28. Garzon knocked down an important triple and although Poland completed the comeback following a series of Israeli turnovers, another huge triple from Garzon sent the teams into halftime tied at 34-34.

Israel opened the third quarter with a 9-2 run to take a 43-36 lead. Both teams then struggled to find their offensive rhythm, with the scoreboard reading 49-43 in Israel’s favor with three minutes remaining in the period. Tirosh scored on a driving layup, but Poland answered with four straight points to make it 55-49 heading into the final quarter.

Poland came out strong in the fourth quarter, cutting the deficit to 59-55. Israel went several minutes without scoring before Tirosh finally connected from beyond the arc with a huge three-pointer. However, Poland responded with back-to-back triples to take a 68-62 lead with two and a half minutes remaining. Israel continued to turn the ball over, allowing the hosts to maintain their momentum and pull away for the 75-64 victory.

Alyssa Baron scored 19 points, Yarden Garzon added 11 points as Shir Tirosh and Daniel Raber scored 7 points each in the defeat.