The Israeli champs thrived on long-range shooting as Tamir Blatt and John DiBartolomeo shined
Sharpshooting Maccabi rolls over Crvena Zvezda, 85-73
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv celebrated a rare win in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague as the Israeli champions blew away Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade 85-73, improving to 6-17 after sinking 12 of 23 shots from downtown.
The outcome may turn out to be a damaging loss for Zvezda, which slipped to 13-10 and took a dent in its bid to reach the playoffs after looking flat and devoid of energy on a court the Serbian side is all too familiar with.
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Maccabi, playing its home games in Belgrade’s Aleksandar Nikolic Hall for a second successive season, was paced by John DiBartolomeo who netted a team-high 15 points and Tamir Blatt, who scored 14 as the duo made 9 of 12 three-pointers between them.
Jaylen Hoard added 13 points for Maccabi and Roman Sorkin chipped in with 12, giving Maccabi a fully deserved victory as the hosts led from start to finish in a lop-sided matchup. Filip Petrusev paced Zvezda on 15 points and veteran guard Milos Teodosic added 14, but none of their misfiring teammates managed double figures.
The first quarter was tight with several lead changes before Maccabi nosed ahead 21-20 at the end of the opening 10 minutes. The Israeli side then engineered a 10-0 run at the start of the second, pulling away for good as DiBartolomeo and Blatt shot the lights out while Sorkin kept getting the better of his markers in the paint. Looking hungrier and more agile all over, Maccabi built a 44-32 lead at the end of the first half and held firm in the third quarter, when Zvezda enjoyed its best spell on the back of 12 quickfire points from Teodosic.
Heading into the fourth quarter with a 68-59 advantage. Maccabi forced Zvezda into submission with a 10-4 run as its players hit one clutch shot after another with big Trevion Williams contributing with some tough efforts. Blatt put the icing on the cake with a deep off-balance three to make the score 84-69 in the dying minutes and seal the contest before the final buzzer.