Yellow-and-blue blows out Gilboa/Galil

Mac TA also completes Macvan signing; Rishon tops Netanya in overtime.

By ALLON SINAI
Schortsanitis 311 (photo credit: Associated Press)
Schortsanitis 311
(photo credit: Associated Press)
Maccabi Tel Aviv continued to dominate its BSL opponents on Sunday night, thrashing Hapoel Gilboa/Galil 82-61 in Gan Ner to improve to a 9-1 record on the season.
Maccabi has been in imperious form since the start of the season and it showed no mercy against Gilboa, which remains the reigning-champion, but only in name.
Gilboa began the game well enough, but completely lost its way in the second period and showed absolutely no fighting spirit before dropping to a second straight defeat and a 5-5 record.
Doron Perkins had 18 points and Richard Hendrix added 15 for Maccabi, which shot a remarkable 30 of 38 from two-point range (79 percent).
Dagan Yavzuri scored 14 points for Gilboa, which hit just 22 of 64 field goal attempts (34 percent).
Earlier Sunday, Maccabi completed the signing of Serbian Milan Macvan, with the 21-year-old forward to join the team in training on Monday.
Tel Aviv has been extremely impressive this season, winning 17 of 19 games in all competitions, including eight straight in the Euroleague.
However, coach David Blatt was looking to strengthen his front court since the start of the campaign and he has found his man in Macvan, who is regarded as one of the brightest prospects in European basketball.
Macvan signed a four-and-a-half year deal with Maccabi and joins from Serbia’s Hemofarm Vrsac at which he averaged 17.0 points and 8.3 rebounds in the Eurocup this season.
“Maccabi is one of the biggest clubs in Europe and I am proud to join them,” Macvan said after scoring 15 points in his final game for Vrsac in Saturday’s Adriatic League loss to Zadar.
“I regret having to leave Vrsac in the middle of the season, but an offer like this only comes around once in a lifetime and I couldn’t turn it down.”
Also Sunday, Maccabi Rishon Lezion won its first game in over a month, defeating Barak Netanya 99- 96 in overtime.
Rishon began the game with a 10-2 run and ended the first quarter with an 11-1 surge to take a 27-13 lead into the second period.
However, the hosts would score 19 of the first 22 points of the second period and led 32-30 midway through the frame.
Rishon would have the edge at the break (44-40) and there was still very little to separate the teams with 10 minutes to play, with Netanya leading 60-59.
The lead would go back and forth in the fourth quarter and game would go into overtime after Netanya’s Adrian Banks tied the score at 82-82.
It was still difficult to separate the teams in the extra five minutes, but a clutch three-point play by Dwayne Mitchell would give the visitors a 98- 95 lead they would not relinquish on the way to an important victory.
Isaiah Swann scored 28 points for Rishon, with Mitchell adding 24 and 10 assists.
Elton Brown had 25 points for Netanya.
Ironi Ashkelon hosts Maccabi Ashdod on Monday.
At Gan Ner, a Tyler Wilkerson basket tied the score at 13-13 with less than three minutes to play in the first period and it seemed the hosts just might be able to remain in touch with the yellow-and-blue.
However, Maccabi ended the first quarter with an 11-3 run, capped by Tal Burstein’s three-point play, and never looked back.
The visitors held Hapoel to just six points in the first five minutes of the second frame and outscored Gilboa 29-12 in the period to open an unassailable margin by the break (53-28).
The second half was pure garbage time, allowing Blatt to rest his starters ahead of Thursday’s final Euroleague regular season game at Prokom Gdynia.