Hapoel beats Ness Ziona
After a close and tough game, and thanks to a winner basket and an excellent game by Levi Randolph (20 points), Hapoel continues its winning streak (5) with another victory against Ness Ziona with a score of 77:74. On Wednsday: the top 16 stage begins
21/01/2024
| Post-Game
It wasn't easy, but after a tenacious game that was tight throughout, Hapoel won today (Sunday) 77:74 over Ironi Ness Ziona. An excellent game by Chris Johnson (21 pts), who led the Reds' scorers, and a crazy winning basket by Levi Randolph (20 pts) increased Hapoel's winning streak to 5. On Wednesday, Hapoel will go to Greece for the start of the top 16 stage against Peristeri.?
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Hapoel, wants to continue to winCourse of the game
1st Quarter
1st Quarter
Hapoel opened the game with Speedy Smith, Or Cornelius, Levi Randolph, Oz Blaטzer and Zach Hankins. At the start of the game, Ness Ziona took advantage of Hapoel's forward lineup and went into the paint both with the help of the tall ones and with the help of moves to the creating guards. The run of the oranges was stopped by the replacement of Chris Johnson who came in and brought physicality and energy to the game. Chris' tremendous moves equalized the result and Brynton Lemar nailed two consecutive three-pointers and put Hapoel in the lead, when at the end of the quarter - 21:16 for the Reds.?
Chris Johnson - The X factor
2nd Quarter
Ness Ziona was the one who opened the second quarter with the upper hand, with precise offensive moves, and a regional defense that confused and made it very difficult for the Jerusalem attack. A small 4:0 run was enough for Ilias Kantzouris to call a time-out and restart his trainees. The regional defense continued even after the timeout, but Speedy Smith's three-pointer and Levi Randolph's masterful moves turned the game upside down and actually sent Elad Hassin to his own timeout. Ness Ziona came out of the timeout well and came within a single position, until Or Cornelius arrived with two consecutive three-pointers that helped the Reds maintain a safe distance. The end of a slightly confused quarter when at the end - 36:32 for Hapoel.?
Levi Randolph. Expert in his job
3rd Quarter
Compared to the start of the game, at the start of the first half it was the Reds who went into the paint with Levi Randolph and Gabi Chachashvili. Olkins and Whitehead were the ones who kept Ness Ziona in the game, penetrating the Jerusalem defense time after time. Speedy Smith was responsible for managing the game, and he did it with composure and responsibility, while also managing to create points. The Oranges wanted a run of their own, when a block by Segev on one side and an easy layup by Olkins on the other side sent Hapoel to a timeout, with the goal of increasing the lead towards the end of the quarter. Ness Ziona managed to reduce the gap a little and at the end of the quarter - Red 53:49.?
The boss on the court
4th Quarter
The last 10 minutes opened with a red run that raised the gap to double digits, especially thanks to and led by the pair of Jerusalem guards - Brynton Lemar and Speedy Smith. Elad Hassin took a timeout, and the Oranges came out differently, being sharper, tougher and managing to significantly reduce Hapoel's advantage towards the last 5 minutes of the game. Speedy broke the Jerusalem drought with an important three-pointer that kept Ness Ziona a little further away. The offensive rebound of the Oranges kept them in the game with the Hapoel receiving a lot of second chance points. The position difference lasted until the last minutes of the game, with lots of tension and nerves, with a tie at 74, 15 seconds to go. Levi Randolph took the last ball and of course, set the result to 77:74 for Hapoel after crazy basket.
Brynton Lemar with the ball
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