Holon humbles Haifa as Hapoel Tel Aviv defeats Herzliya
Holon is hoping to finally kick-start its FIBA Champions League campaign on Tuesday.
By ALLON SINAIHapoel Holon forward Joe Alexander had 22 points and seven rebounds in last night’s 90-85 victory at Bnei Herzliya, Holon’s first victory over all competitions this season.(photo credit: ADI AVISHAI)
Hapoel Holon registered its third straight BSL win to move over .500 for the first time this season on Saturday night, defeating the struggling Maccabi Haifa 75-69.After losing its first two games of the campaign, Holon improved to 3-2 by opening a double-digit lead in the second quarter and holding off a Haifa comeback in the final minutes.New signing Glen Rice Jr. led the winners in his BSL debut with 17 points and 11 rebounds, with Joe Alexander also scoring 17 points.Angel Rodriguez had 15 points for Haifa, which fell to 1-4.After getting back on track in the BSL, Holon is hoping to finally kick-start its FIBA Champions League campaign on Tuesday. Holon, which hosts Enisey Krasnoyarsk of Russia, has dug itself a significant hole by losing its first four regular season games, but still has time to resurrect its campaign. The regular season consists of 14 games and four of the eight teams in the group will advance to the round of 16.Also Saturday, Hapoel Tel Aviv thrashed Bnei Herzliya 88-64. The visitors clinched the win with a 14-0 run (77-58) in the fourth quarter. Jerel McNeal led five Hapoel players in double figures with 21 points, with Tomer Ginat adding 13 points and 12 boards for Tel Aviv, which improved to 3-2. Shawn Dawson and Jeff Adrien had 18 points each for Herzliya, which fell to 1-4.On Sunday, Maccabi Tel Aviv aims to extend its perfect start, while Hapoel Jerusalem looks to bounce back from its first BSL defeat.Maccabi is confident of improving to 5-0 when it visits Maccabi Rishon Lezion after claiming a convincing win over Olimpia Milano in Euroleague action last Thursday. Tel Aviv will rest Artsiom Parakhouski and Pierre Jackson ahead of Thursday’s home showdown with Real Madrid.Rishon has started the season with three wins in four games and is tied for second place with Jerusalem and Ironi Nahariya.Jerusalem, which visits Hapoel Eilat, finally got off the mark in the Eurocup with a road win at Reggio Emilia last week, but that came on the back of a surprise home loss to Maccabi Ashdod.On Monday, Nahariya will try and continue its strong start when it goes to Hapoel Gilboa/Galil, while Maccabi Ashdod welcomes Ironi Ness Ziona.
