Nes Ziona defeated Hapoel Holon 77–72 on Thursday evening after a dramatic game at Zisman Hall in Winner Cup action. The game began as a one-sided affair, with Nes Ziona going on a 19–0 run and building a 16-point lead in the third quarter. Holon came back largely thanks to a terrific finish to the third quarter, which they won 26–14 to take a 59–57 lead.

However, Nes Ziona ultimately stepped up when it mattered most to close out the win. Paris Lee scored 16 points while Bryce Brown, Spencer Weisz and Justin James all scored 11 points in the victory as Adama Sanogo scored 13 points and both Claudell Harris Jr. and Brandon Johns Jr.s each scored 12 points in the loss.

Nes Ziona head coach Paul Corsaro said, “They’re a very good team and it feels especially good because our players managed to solve it together and find a way to win this game in a difficult environment. I’m proud of our development over the course of these two games, but we still have a very long way to go, and we have to stay hungry and continue working.”

Hapoel Holon head coach Predrag Krunić summed things up, “It was a very intense game and it was our first official preseason game and we put a lot of energy on the court which is good. We played with too many isolations and offensively we need a little more consistency, but this is a new team with a lot of new players.”

Nes Ziona captain Spencer Weisz was asked whether it was a good sign that the team is currently undefeated at 2–0 in the Winner Cup, compared to last season when they lost every game, “Yes, I think everyone came in really prepared this year. I think we’re focused. Our roster is excellent. We have a lot of depth, a lot of talent and I think the coach is really building character here. I think you saw that tonight.

“It’s so early and we’re only just getting to know each other, but we’ve gotten off to a great start. We had a little setback in the third quarter, and then in the fourth quarter we fought, and I think that’s a great sign, hopefully, for the future. We have a lot of work to do, but for now, we’re 2–0, we’ll take it and we’re looking forward to the next stages of the tournament.”

Maccabi Tel Aviv are in Cyprus where they will participate in a preseason tournament over the Rosh Hashana holiday as they will face Aris on Friday afternoon and Olympiacos on Sunday.

“The tournament is a good test for us,” Maccabi Tel Aviv head coach Oded Katash said. “We’re still not at the peak of our fitness and there are players who only joined recently, but preseason games against good teams can teach us a lot, as well as help us come together and get into the rhythm of playing games. Overall, it’s a quality tournament with good conditions.”

“We’ll want to distribute the minutes and try different things,” the coach continued. “At this stage of the preparation, we’re not using everything we’ll need later on. Instead, we’re focusing on what we’ve done so far. We want to see improvement, as we saw between the first and second games.”