Hapoel Eilat Complete the Comeback; Knocks Off Defending Champs

Hapoel Eilat pulled off a miracle comeback in the Israel Super League Semi-Finals; Coming down from 0-2, to win the series 3-2 knocking out defending champions Maccabi Tel Aviv. Eilat will play Hapoel Jerusalem in the Finals.

Hapoel Eilat was led by Afik Nissim who scored 21 points for the winning team. Nissim has been consistent throughout this entire series and continued to play big minutes as he led his team to victory. Nissim had great help from teammates Adrian Uter who had a big double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds as well as Kevin Palmer who had 13 points and 6 rebounds for the game.

Maccabi Tel Aviv was lead by struggling star Jeremy Pargo who got out of his slump and scored 18 points and had 8 assists, but it was not enough to hold off Eilat’s balanced scoring attack. Pargo had help from teammates Yogev Ohayon who scored 19 points and Marquez Haynes who added in 10 points. Besides these three double-digit scorers, Tel Aviv did not find much scoring help.

Hapoel Eilat now moves onto the Finals as Hapoel Jerusalem waits to play them as a new Super League champion will be crowned. Game 1 will take place on June 22nd for a chance to gain a 1-0 lead in this final series of the season.

Hapoel Eilat Wins Game 4; Forces Decisive Game 5

Down 0-2 against Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Eilat comes back from the dead and wins 2 straight games to force a decisive game 5 in the Super League semi finals. The winner of this series will face Hapoel Jerusalem in the Finals, after they swept Macccabi Rishon.

Eilat had a great balanced scoring attack with 6 players scoring in double figures. They were lead by Afik Nissim who scored 18 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. He had help from Adrian Uter who put in 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the contest.

Tel Aviv’s Jeremy Pargo had his second consecutive subpar game, only scoring 11 points. They were lead by Jake Cohen who scored 16 points, had 5 rebounds and 6 assists in the losing effort. He had help from Nate Linehart who had 14 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists.

Eilat was unstoppable from behind the 3-point line, hitting 13 of 25 from downtown. They outrebounded Maccabi Tel Aviv 43-32 and dished out 28 assists on their 28 field goals.

Eilat was in control the entire game, always maintaining the lead, and playing great defense, leading to their 92-79 win to force game 5 and a chance to play Hapoel Jerusalem in the finals. Game 5 takes place on Wednesday June 17th.

Hapoel Eilat Wins Game 3; Stays Alive

In a potential series closing game for Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Eilat managed to stay alive in the series with an overtime victory. Eilat trailed by 6 at the end of 3 quarters but outscored Tel Aviv 22-16 in the 4th quarter to force overtime, which lead to their 104-98 victory.

Eilat was lead by forward Adrian Uter who had a great game with 26 points and 11 rebounds. He received much needed help from Amit Simhon and Kevin Palmer who both had 18 points, as well as Khalif Wyatt who scored 17 points.

Maccabi Tel Aviv’s leader Jeremy Pargo didn’t have his best game ever, only scoring 11 points, but the slack was picked up by Nate Linehart who scored 22 points and had 11 rebounds, as well as Brian Randle who put in 21 points and grabbed 8 rebounds.

Eilat needed to be perfect to steal a game on the road against Tel Aviv and they pretty much were. They shot 28-32 from the free throw line and dished out 22 assists in the victory. Now they can go back home and continue to attempt the come back in the series and keep their season alive.

Maccabi Tel Aviv blows out Hapeol Eilat for 2-0 Lead in Semis

Hapoel Eilat hosted Maccabi Tel Aviv for game 2 of the Israel Super League semi-finals. Maccabi Tel Aviv came off the game 1 win at home with a big game from American guard Jeremy Pargo.

Pargo had another big game for game 2, scoring 23 points and dishing out 6 assists leading Tel Aviv to a blowout victory over Eilat to take a 2-0 lead in the series, heading back to Tel Aviv for game 3. Along with Pargo’s 23 points, he received help from Alex Tyus who had a big double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, as well as Yogev Ohayon who also scored in double digits with 11 points.

Eilat did all they could to stay with Tel Aviv, but they’re firepower seems to be too much for Eilat to handle. Eilat was led by Afik Nissim and Brian Asbury who both had 14 points, while Adrian Uter threw in a double double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. More players need to step up if they want to make this a competitive series.

Tel Aviv leads the series 2-0 heading back home. Game 3 takes place this Wednesday at 9:05 P.M. in Tel Aviv. It’s win or go home for Eilat as Maccabi Tel Aviv looks to close out the series, making it their 2nd consecutive sweep during these playoffs.

Pargo Scores 32; Gives Macabbi Tel Aviv Game 1 Victory

The Israel Super League playoffs semi-finals started up last week with Macabbi Tel Aviv hosting Hapoel Eilat for game 1. Maccabi Tel Aviv is coming out of a first round sweep of Nes Ziona while Hapoel Eilat just finished a back and forth series with Maccabi Haifa, closing out the series with a big game from American star Khalif Wyatt.

The contest was pretty close the whole way through, Hapoel Eilat showing balanced scoring with five players in double-digit points. This included Kevin Palmer with 10, Khalif Wyatt with 11 and Amit Sinhon, Brian Asbury and Niv Berkowitz who all had 13 points.

Even with the balanced scoring, Hapoel Eilat could not hold off Macabbi Tel Aviv guard Jeremy Pargo who scored 32 points, had 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Veteran Devin Smith also contributed to the win with 14 points while Nate Linhart threw in 12 points off the bench.

However, Smith came up limping and is doubtful to return for the balance of this series.

This gives Maccabi Tel Aviv a 1-0 series lead with game 2 coming up on Sunday in Eilat.

Hapoel Jerusalem Wins Game 3; Finishes Sweep

In a potential series clinching game 3, Hapoel Jerusalem managed to complete the sweep of Maccabi Rishon in a blowout game 3. With this win, Jerusalem advances to the Super League Finals, and will play the winner of the Maccabi Tel Aviv/Hapoel Eilat semi finals series.

Jerusalem had a balanced scoring attack with Deon Thompson scoring 15 points, Donta Smith and Bar Timor both scoring 14 points and Yotam Halperin putting in 13 points. Jerusalem dominated the game in the paint, outscoring Rishon 64-42 down low.

Shawn Dawson did all he could for his team in a losing effort by scoring 24 points and 5 blocks. The next best scorer for Rishon was Dominque Johnson who scored had 16 points.

Jerusalem will have some time to rest up for the finals as Hapoel Eilat avoided the sweep against Macabbi Tel Aviv by winning game 3. They will have even more rest if Eilat wins game 4 to force a deciding game 5.

Hapoel Jerusalem Extends Series Lead to 2-0

Maccabi Rishon hosted Hapoel Jerusalem last night with hopes of evening up the semi-finals series at 1-1. Jerusalem won game 1 on their home court with a score of 81-73.

Hapoel Jerusalem was up the whole game, leading by 12 at the half and as much as 16 after three quarters. Maccabi Rishon however mounted a furious comeback in the fourth quarter outscoring Jerusalem 27-12 in the period. The comeback was not enough as Jerusalem was able to hold it off slightly and maintain a 1-point victory to steal game 2 on the road.

Maccabi Rishon was led by Shawn Dawson who scored 24 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. He received help from forward/center Jackie Carmichael who had a big double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds and Dominique Johnson who put in 15 points for his team.

Hapoel Jerusalem star Donta Smith led his team to a victory by scoring 25 points and grabbing 6 rebounds while forward Deon Thompson had 13 points in the win. Jerusalem lead a balanced scoring attack behind there leading scorers with three players who scored 9 points each.

With the steal of game 2, the series heads back to Jerusalem giving Hapoel Jerusalem the opportunity to complete the sweep on their home court, sending them to the Israel Super League Finals. Maccabi Rishon hopes to steal a game on the road and must force a game 5 if they want to keep their season alive. Game 3 Take place Thursday at 9:00 P.M. in Jerusalem.

Balanced Scoring Attack Leads to Game 1 Victory for Hapoel Jerusalem

Game 1 of the Israel Super League semi-finals took place last Thursday with Hapoel Jerusalem hosting Maccabi Rishon. Hapoel Jerusalem coming off a first round sweep of Hapoel Tel Aviv while Maccabi Rishon beat Hapoel Holon in 4 games

Maccabi Rishon was led by guard Dominique Johnson who scored 24 points, with help from Shawn Dawson who put in 18 points. The two double-digit scorers did not receive too much help from their teammates, and therefore could not hold off Hapoel Jerusalem’s balanced scoring attack.

Hapoel Jerusalem had 5 players in double digits during game 1 including Deon Thompson and Leor Eliyahu with 15 points each, Donta Smith and Bracey Wright with 14 points each and Yotam Halperin put in 10 points. They also shared the ball extremely well, by producing 26 assists on their 31 made field goals.

Jerusalem lead by 12 after 3 quarters, eventually going on to win the game 81-73, giving Jerusalem the 1-0 advantage. Game 2 takes place tonight at 9 P.M., hosted by Maccabi Rishon.