Euroleague Basketball: Mac TA edges Cibona in Zagreb

A 27-4 second quarter puts Maccabi Tel Aviv 44-24 up at the break, but Zagreb takes a one-point lead with two-and-a-half minutes left in the game.

By ALLON SINAI
Mac TA 298.88 (photo credit: AP)
Mac TA 298.88
(photo credit: AP)
Despite squandering a 20-point halftime lead, Maccabi Tel Aviv edged Cibona Zagreb 81-76 on Thursday night in Croatia for a third straight Euroleague win under Tzvika Sherf. A 27-4 second quarter put Maccabi Tel Aviv 44-24 up at the break, but Zagreb took a one-point lead with two-and-a-half minutes left in the game. Tel Aviv would, however, be the more composed side in the decisive moments and clinched its fifth straight win under Sherf in all competitions. Will Bynum scored 21 points, with Yotam Halperin adding 13. Marcus Fizer and Esteban Batista each scored 12 points, but once more Terence Morris was the team's best player, scoring 11 points and grabbing 15 rebounds in 40 minutes on court. The hosts, which were led by Sam Hoskin's 27 points, opened their first substantial lead of the game with three minutes to play in the first quarter (18-12) and led 20-17 after 10 minutes. Cibona went scoreless in the first four minutes of the second quarter and Batista's two points opened a 26-20 lead. The margin continued to mushroom as the period progressed and Maccabi extended the lead to 20 points (44-24) after Zagreb failed to score a single point in the final four minutes of the first half. Chris Warren's (12 points) three-pointer at the start of the second half was a sign of the things to come, as the hosts were unstoppable from beyond the arc in the third period. Tre Kelley (18 points) was especially lethal from three point range and his basket from mid-court to beat the third quarter buzzer cut the hosts deficit to just nine points (62-53). Zagreb started the fourth period with a 9-0 run which tied the score (62-62) and the hosts took their first advantage in more than 25 minutes after Kelley's three point move two-and-a-half minutes to the end of the encounter. Bynum would, however, regain Maccabi's lead immediately and Morris' basket with 10 seconds to play secured the win.