Maccabi Tel Aviv blew away Nahariya 107-63 in front of 300 fans as Ioannis Sfairopoulos’s squad put on a show for the supporters that were allowed to attend the event due to the new government COVID-19 regulations.

The Yellow & Blue faithful who cheered the entire game all had to be vaccinated against the coronavirus needed to present their “Green Passport” in order to enter the facility to enjoy the proceedings. Over the upcoming weeks it is expected of everything goes well that the number of fans will increase. The only negative coming out of the game and it’s quite the negative is that Yovel Zoosman left the game with a knee injury and will undergo and MRI on Tuesday to determine the extent of the damage.

After a close first quarter, the hosts came out strong in the second frame as Chris Jones, John Dibartolomeo and Oz Blayzer played the catalysts to take a twenty point lead into halftime and cruise to the victory. Jones led the way with 17 points and 7 rebounds, Blayzer added 16 points and Blayzer chipped in with 14 points. Michael Young with 21 points and Jaron Blossomgame with 20 paced Nahariya.

“The presence of the fans was most important and we are very happy that they are back,” said Maccabi coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos. “We felt their warmth and support and we want to thank them and hopefully there will be more soon. We hope all will go well and that there will be more and more.

“We play the game to enjoy the fans who are so connected to the team. This season is the first time the club has played without fans. Even with 300 fans it created a great atmosphere. I love the fans and without them it’s like food without salt, no taste. As for the Euroleague season it for sure sure would have been different with fans.”

Chris Jones, who finally experienced the supporters for the first time also spoke about their presence, “It was great with the extra energy coming from a different place other than the bench. It was great. We have to carry it over to the Euroleague games now.”

Ante Zizic, Chris Jones and Sandy Cohen scored to get Maccabi Tel Aviv on the board early but Joe Alexander and Michael Young answered for Nahariya as the northerners held a 10-8 lead midway through the first quarter. Angelo Caloiaro put points in from the paint as did Jones on a 3-point play, Elijah Bryant went from downtown and Jones fed Oz Blazyer for an easy bucket as the Yellow & Blue grabbed a 20-17 advantage after ten minutes.

Bryant opened the second quarter with a bucket and foul, Blayzer hit a triple but Jaron Blossomgame did the same at the other end of the court as Maccabi stayed in front 30-20 with 7:27 left in the period. John DiBartolomeo nailed a 3-pointer as did Dragan Bender while Alexander and Blossomgame tried to keep Shai Segalovich’s team in the game but Jones, Bryant and Blazyer kept scoring to give Ioannis Sfairopoulos’s squad a 50-30 lead at halftime.

Young got the third quarter underway with a quartet of buckets but Bryant went from deep thanks to a nice pass from Calaoiro and added a baseline runner as the Yellow & Blue continued to lead 59-38 midway through the frame. Zizic with a sweet mini-hook, Cohen scored off the backboard and Dibartolomeo drilled a triple to send the game into the final frame with the hosts ahead 75-42.

Bender began the fourth quarter with a pair of buckets, Dibartolomeo dialled up from long distance and Jones scored as well. Young and Ziv Ben Tzvi found points but it was way too little and way to late as Blazyer put down a dunk, Eidan Alber scored and Cohen put on an air show for the fans as Maccabi ran away with the 107-63 win.