Eilat climbs out of BSL cellar • Herzliya wins third straight

Eilat thrashed Maccabi Kiryat Gat 104-75, going on a 12-0 run to end the first quarter and never looking back.

By ALLON SINAI
Oded Katash’s second tenure as coach of Hapoel Eilat got off to a winning start last night as the Southerners beat Maccabi Kiryat Gat 104-75. (photo credit: DANNY MARON)
Oded Katash’s second tenure as coach of Hapoel Eilat got off to a winning start last night as the Southerners beat Maccabi Kiryat Gat 104-75.
(photo credit: DANNY MARON)
One day after being hired by Hapoel Eilat, and nine days after being fired by Hapoel Tel Aviv, Oded Katash led his new team to a comprehensive win on Thursday night.
Eilat thrashed Maccabi Kiryat Gat 104-75, going on a 12-0 run to end the first quarter and never looking back.
Arik Shivek left Eilat on Tuesday after the team opened the campaign with a 1-4 record and the club’s ownership refused to make changes to the roster.
Shivek guided Eilat to the BSL final last season, upsetting Maccabi Tel Aviv in the semifinals after trailing 0-2 in the best-offive series. However, he quickly lost patience with the team’s current roster, opening the door for Katash’s return to the club after he was sacked by Hapoel Tel Aviv last week following its 1-3 start to the campaign.
Katash, who enjoyed a successful tenure in Eilat between 2012 and 2014, didn’t have time to make significant changes, but his appointment on its own seemed to make the difference on Thursday.
Eilat’s run at the end of the first period opened a double-digit gap (20-10) which reached over 20 points (35-14) less than three minutes into the second frame following Amit Simhon’s three-pointer.
Kiryat Gat never came close to mounting a comeback and Eilat strolled to a confidence- boosting win.
Simhon ended the game with 20 points to lead five Eilat players with more than 15 points, with Alade Aminu and Kevin Palmer netting 18 points each, and Khalif Wyatt and Elishay Kadir finishing with 15.
Paul Delaney had 17 points for Kiryat Gat, which fell to 2-4.
Meanwhile, after opening the season with three straight defeats, Bnei Herzliya made it three wins in a row on Thursday, beating Ironi Nahariya 88-72.
Herzliya took a four-point lead (40-36) into the break and it wasn’t until the final quarter that the hosts clinched the win.
Herzliya scored nine of the first 11 points of the frame to establish a 14-point cushion (72-58) which Nahariya couldn’t erase.
Stephen Dennis had 19 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Herzliya, with Richard Howell netting 19 points for Nahariya, which fell to 3-3.
BSL action continues on Saturday when Maccabi Tel Aviv hosts Ironi Ness Ziona and Hapoel Tel Aviv visits Maccabi Ashdod.