Hapoel returns from Afula with a loss
The Reds lost their second game in the league to Hapoel Afula away 105:65 after a record performance by Arlington (25 points). Next stop: PAOK Thessaloniki
48 hours after Hapoel's league debut in Ramat Gan, today (Thursday), Hapoel lost 105:65 to Hapoel Afula. Hapoel was not in the game from the first moment and was unable to enter the offensive flow at any point during it. Next week, Hapoel will play against PAOK Thessaloniki, which may guarantee them a place in the top 16 of the FIBA Champions League. A loss, and Hapoel will likely finish in 2nd place, leading to the play-in stage.
.jpeg)
Before the game, a candle lighting ceremony was held in honor of the first candle for Hanukkah, and this time, in the spirit of the times, the ceremony marked two months to October 7 and the surprise attack by Hamas on the State of Israel. The ceremony was dedicated to all the victims of that day. The ceremony was attended by Oz Blayzer, the captain of the team in the match, and Matan Adelson, the owner of the team.
Course of the game
1st Quarter
Hapoel opened the game with Adi Cohen Saban, Yovel Zoosman, Or Cornelius, Joe Alexander, and Gabi Chachashvili. Adi Cohen Saban, who in the previous game did not start in the top five but provided a good game, was entrusted with the job of managing the game. The Jerusalem defense was pretty soft, but Gabi Chachashvili, who scored all of the team's first six points, kept Hapoel close. From the moment Gabi went down and Hapoel lost its size advantage over the northern team, Afula started to run with regular offensive moves and increase the advantage to 28:13, about 2 minutes to the end. Good defensive moves by Adi Cohen Saban and Chacha, combined with effective moves by Or Cornelius on offense, tried to reduce the difference slightly at the end of the quarter - 32:17.
Hapoel started the second quarter with Adi Cohen Saban, Afek Amsalem, Oz Blayzer, Joe Alexander, and Gabi Chachashvili. Afula started the quarter exactly where they left off, with Marcellus Arlington going up to 11 points in the game. The Afulas continued to run as their pressure all over the field yielded results and steals, with Or Cornelius and Yovel Zoosman taking command on the other end to keep Hapoel in the game. Hapoel had a hard time finding the offensive flow and suffered from very bad shooting percentages, which Spencer Weiss took advantage of the situation to punish. Afula continued to run when Hapoel was having a hard time finding defensive solutions and moved to a zone defense. The zone also failed to stop the offense of the northerners, and at the end of the half, 64:35 to Afula.
Hapoel started the third quarter with Yovel Zoosman, Or Cornelius, Oz Blayzer, Joe Alexander, and Gabi Chachashvili. At the beginning of the quarter, it was Oz Blayzer who, with two consecutive one-and-one moves, followed by an important three-pointer, narrowed the gap a little. Arlington, on the other hand, did not stop scoring from any range and reached 20 points at the beginning of the quarter, leaving Afula's advantage high. A 27-point lead midway through the third quarter prompted Shay Ole'archyk to take his players down for a timeout. The time-out failed to get Hapoel into a rhythm in the attack, but the defense tightened mainly thanks to the pressure on the ball given by Cohen Saban. The northerners did not stop pressing the gas for a moment and at the end of the quarter - 86:50 to Afula.
.png)
