Game postponed due to the forecast of stormy and snowy weather in Jerusalem.
By ALLON SINAIThe fear of an empty arena due to inclement weather brought the Israel Basketball Association to postpone the State Cup final between Hapoel Jerusalem and Maccabi Tel Aviv by three days.(photo credit: ODED KARNI/BSL)
The State Cup final between Hapoel Jerusalem and Maccabi Tel Aviv was postponed from Thursday to Sunday by the Israel Basketball Association on Tuesday due to the forecast of stormy and snowy weather in Jerusalem.Following Monday’s semifinals, the IBA insisted that the final will go ahead as planned on Thursday. However, after reassessing the situation on Tuesday it was decided to reschedule the final.“Due to the weather forecast predicting snow on Thursday and in order to prevent a situation in which the game would have to be called off or that the fans will be unable to make it to the arena safely, the IBA has decided to postpone the game to Sunday,” an IBA press release read.The change caused a scheduling headache for the BSL and both finalists, especially Maccabi. With a Euroleague game against Panathinaikos to play next Thursday, Maccabi agreed to postpone the BSL contest against Bnei Herzliya by just one day to Monday, meaning it will be in action once more less than 24 hours after the cup final.Jerusalem’s BSL game against Ironi Ness Ziona was moved to Wednesday.Week 20 action will begin as planned on Saturday when Maccabi Rishon Lezion hosts Hapoel Tel Aviv.Hapoel strengthened its roster on Tuesday with the signing of Dijon Thompson.The former Jerusalem forward played for Russian club Nizhny Novgorod over the past couple of years, being named to the All-Eurocup First Team in 2014 after helping the team to the semifinals and registering averages of 13.5 points and 8.2 rebounds.“He is an excellent player with Israeli and European experience who will help complete our puzzle,” said Hapoel coach Oded Katash.
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