The two landmark signings make the Israeli outfit look a different team
Johnathan Motley and Patrick Beverley give Hapoel a new dimension
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Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv made an indifferent start to the BKT EuroCup season, but in Round 3 the club hit top gear with an impressive 87-101 road win over Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul on the back of a stellar performance from big man Johnathan Motley.
The physical center scored 11 and 14 points respectively in the opening two games of the campaign, a 78-75 defeat at Joventut Badalona followed by a tough 89-84 home win over Wolves Twinsbet Vilnius. On Tuesday, he poured in 24 and toyed with his opponents as Hapoel subdued Besiktas all over.
Hapoel got a measure of revenge for last season’s painful 94-89 quarterfinal defeat to Besiktas which came after a pair of regular season wins over the Turkish side, as Dusan Alimpijevic’s men overcame a 21-point deficit to reach the competition’s last four.
With former Fenerbahce center Motley and ex-NBA guard Patrick Beverley, Hapoel looked out of their opponent’s league for the bulk of a lop-sided contest this time around, in which there was no way back for Besiktas after the Turkish outfit again trailed by 21 points on several occasions.
Motley, who averaged 12.8 points and 4.8 rebounds across two seasons at Fenerbahce, traded the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague’s glitz and glamour for being a pillar of Hapoel’s ambitions to win the EuroCup, which would give the 29-year-old an opportunity to return to Europe’s premier club competition.
The 36-year-old Beverley brought a wealth of experience from a 12-year spell in the NBA, most notably with the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Clippers, as he reached the playoffs in eight straight years with the two franchises.
The versatile guard pulled the backcourt strings for Hapoel against Besiktas, scoring 16 points and collecting 10 boards in a cohesive team effort which saw the home team dismantled to pieces by the end of the third quarter.
Head coach Stefanos Dedas was pleased with his team’s effort as Hapoel dominated despite poor shooting from deep, with the visiting team also committing 17 turnovers in a fast-paced contest against Besiktas.
“We dominated for 35 minutes, we know what our potential is and today was a good showcase what we can do,” Dedas said in his post-game comments.
“However, we mustn’t ignore the fact that Besiktas is the same team we played last year in the quarterfinals. Same players, same coach. We made it look easy, but it wasn’t.
“My assistants and I worked hard to prepare the team. We shot 1 of 17 on three-pointers and made 17 turnovers, but still we managed to win, which shows our potential.”
If the display against Besiktas is anything to go by, Hapoel has every chance of being a strong contender to challenge for the EuroCup title this season, with Motley and Beverley leading the way.