Maccabi Tel Aviv dropped Baskonia 89-81 on Tuesday night to win its second Euroleague game in a row to move its record to 9-6, with a date against Red Star Belgrade on tap for Thursday.
Five players featured in double figures while the hosts grabbed 50 rebounds, including 16 on the offensive boards, and dished out 27 assists in the win.
Playing at their home away from home in Belgrade, Oded Katash’s squad got off to a terrific start as Josh Nebo dominated the paint, and James Webb was lethal from the outside. But Dusko Ivanovic’s team, led by Markus Howard, Vanja Marinkovic, and Tadas Sedekerskis, grabbed a slim 49-47 lead at halftime.
Roman Sorkin got busy in the third quarter while Webb and Nebo continued to score as Maccabi took the victory.In a game where both Lorenzo Brown and Wade Baldwin struggled - going a combined 4-of-24 shooting, Nebo led the way with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
Webb added 17 points as well, while Sorkin chipped in with 14 points in the win. Howard scored 19 points, Marinkovic put in 16 points, and Sedekerskis scored 15 points in the loss.
Teams speak on reasons for score
“It was a close game, and we had the possibility to win,” Baskonia bench boss Dusko Ivanovic explained. “But Maccabi killed us on the offensive rebounds, and we didn’t have a clear offensive option over the last few minutes.”Webb reflected on the game and what spurred Maccabi to the victory.“In the second half, we came out and turned up our defense and intensity. They still hit a couple of shots, but we rebounded well, and at the end, we gutted it out and got stops. We knew we had to pick up the energy, and they are a high-scoring and a very fast-paced team, so we had to match their intensity.”Nebo also spoke about the keys to the win while also looking ahead to Thursday’s game against Red Star.“I don’t think we did anything perfect, but in the second half, we did a better job defensively and did a better job paying attention to the gameplan and the scouting report and that gave us the advantage in the second half. We have to get our rest and sleep, practice, prepare, and get mentally ready for the next game.”Red Star Belgrade will come into the game after having lost to Real Madrid 72-58 in Serbia and sports a 5-10 record under Maccabi Tel Aviv’s former head coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos, who took over from Dusko Ivanovic following his 1-3 start.While the Serbian side has struggled, it still features a number of dangerous weapons, including Milos Teodosic, Nemanja Nedovic, and Luka Mitrovic, who can always cause damage to a team like the yellow-and-blue should it take its opponent lightly.On Tuesday against Baskonia, Maccabi put its mark on the game early as Nebo scored from inside, Brown hit from the mid-range, and Bonzie Colson was good from deep to get the yellow-and-blue on the board.Sedekerskis and Codi Miller-Mcintyre responded for Baskonia, but Tel Aviv held an 11-7 lead midway through the first quarter.Baldwin went from deep, but Marinkovic answered right back, while Markus Howard also dialed up a pair from long distance, Sorkin and Maik Kotsar traded baskets, and Webb dunked as the teams were all knotted up at 22-22 after 10 minutes of play.Tamir Blatt opened up the second quarter from downtown, as did Antonius Cleveland, and a red-hot Webb scored in bundles from the inside and outside to stake Maccabi to a 39-30 lead with 5:54 left in the first half.Colson put down a Brown assist for an alley-oop, Howard hit back-to-back triples, and Nebo scored a pair inside. Marinkovic scored a 3-point play in transition and then went from deep, while Sedekerskis scored as well to give Ivanovic’s team a stunning 49-47 advantage at halftime.Marinkovic kept scoring at will as he went from beyond the arc to begin the third quarter. Colson and Baldwin came back with points, but Miller-McIntyre and Sedekerskis scored to keep the visitors in front 57-54 midway through the period. Sorkin and Blatt drained 3-pointers for Katash’s squad, while Howard came right back with one of his own, but Sorkin put in a rebound to give Maccabi a 68-67 lead after 30 minutes of action.Chima Moneke and Sorkin traded baskets while Webb dialed up long distance, and Moneke scored a 3-point play. Blatt put in a deuce for Maccabi, but Miller-McIntyre scored to keep Baskonia within a single point (77-76) with 5:08 left in regulation time.Then, Jasiel Rivero scored his first field goal of the game, Nebo put in a rebound, Colson cut to the hoop for two, and Nebo dunked to wrap up the victory as Maccabi will now try to sweep the double week by beating Red Star Belgrade.