Maccabi Tel Aviv captured their 57th Israel League Championship as they defeated Hapoel Tel Aviv 82-74 in a heated 2-1 series win. The yellow-and-blue struggled as the reds held onto a slim lead for the first thirty minutes of the game, but Oded Katash’s squad paced by Roman Sorkin and Jasiel Rivero came alive in the fourth quarter to take the victory.

Roman Sorkin whi was named the game’s MVP scored 19 points, Rivero added 16 points while Lorenzo Brown and Josh Nebo each scored 12 points each in the win. Tyler Ennis scored 17 points as Tomer Ginat and Xavier Munford each scored 15 points in the loss.

Tip-off of game three was pushed back thirty minutes as Hapoel Tel Aviv fans battled with the police outside of Yad Eliyahu and continued inside the facility as the contest needed to be halted a number of times in the second half. Hapoel supporters lit over a dozen flares and lobbed a number of them onto Maccabi fans sitting below which caused a lengthy delay as the fire department needed to tend to the fires that broke out in the stands.

Xavier Munford, Tyler Ennis and Jaylen Hoard took the bull by the horns in the opening frame to grab a 24-21 lead after ten minutes of play. Roman Sorkin and Jasiel Rivero led an 11-0 run to put Oded Katash’s squad in front but Tomer Ginat, Hoard along with a triple by Ennis closed the gap to 39-38 at halftime.

Munford was active in the third quarter to give Hapoel a 54-48 lead but Sorkin, Lorenzo Brown and Josh Nebo got busy and pull back to within 1-point, 55-54 by the end of the period but Blatt along with Rivero and Sorkin put in points a plenty over the course of the final frame to take home the title.

Tomer Ginat and Xavier Munford went from deep, Tyler Ennis put in a floater for Hapoel Tel Aviv, Lorenzo Brown hit a deuce while Bonzie Colson nailed a triple for Maccabi Tel Aviv to open the game, Josh Nebo dropped in a pair of points while Kyle Alexander did the same as the reds held a slim 9-7 lead midway through the first quarter. Wade Baldwin made his presence felt with an acrobatic layup, Alexander came in off the wing for a basket, Ennis went from way downtown, Rivera scored inside, Jaylen Hoard did the same and then added a 3-point play, John Dibartolomeo dialled up from long distance but so did Munford at the end of the period to keep the visitors in front 24-21 after ten minutes of action.

Rafi Menco went from deep to begin the second quarter, Sorkin added a basket, Tamir Blatt and Sorkin went from downtown, Ginat came back with a triple of his own, Rivero put in a deuce as did Hoard at the other end but the yellow-and-blue took a 34-29 lead with five minutes left in the half. Ginat put in a 3-point play, Brown dropped a floater in the lane, Hoard dunked, Nebo scored at the other end but an Ennis triple at the end of the half pulled Hapoel to within 1-point, 39-38.

Braian Angola led off the third quarter with an and-1, Munford went from deep, Nebo dunked, Ennis and Brown traded baskets, Alexander and Nebo did the same while Munford added another basket to take a 51-46 lead midway through the period. Rivero scored inside, Ginat did the same, Sorkin scored off his own rebound and added another basket and Brown put in a layup to get to within 55-54 after thirty minutes of action.

Blatt went from deep, Brown dropped deuce and Sorkin dunked to begin the fourth quarter, Timor came back with a bucket but Rivero scored in the paint and then dunked off an alley-oop from Brown to give Maccabi a 66-59 lead with five minutes to go in regulation time. Rivero scored yet again, Ennis came back with points, Sorkin went from deep, Munford put in a layup but a massive Nebo dunk put the final cherry on top of the yellow-and-blue’s second straight league title.