2024-03-05 22:30:00
Photo: Sport 5
There are games that go down in the annals of Israeli basketball and Hapoel Holon experienced this evening (Tuesday) what could easily have a place of honor. With their backs against the wall and suffering from a host of injuries, the Purples managed three interrupted overtimes in Athens, beating AAK 108:112 and staying strong in the fight for qualification for the quarterfinals of the FIBA Champions League.
Holon had all the conditions to lose this game: empty stands in the hall in Athens, a long list of injuries and the star-studded team that faced them and was also determined to save their European season. Amit Sharaf’s team put everything aside and with an uncompromising fighting game managed to achieve this very important victory. If the Purples find themselves in the quarter-finals, they will probably return to this game, which was the turning point in the second group stage.
Holon’s strength was undoubtedly its team play and the fact that each of the players gave their all for the victory. Eight purple players shared the 55 minutes in the game, each and every one of them scored in double figures. Drew Crawford stood out above all, scoring 19 points including three three-pointers from six attempts. Yotam Hanouchi added 17 points and Kevin Hervey, in his debut game in the champions, provided a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds.
It is impossible not to give a good word to AK Athens as well and especially to two of its players. Mindaugas Kuzminskas provided one of the greatest displays of basketball seen in the Champions League and with 40 points, including 11-for-19, along with 11 rebounds (seven of them offensive) was the main reason why the Greeks stayed in the picture throughout the game. Jordan McRae, former Hapoel Tel Aviv, also made life difficult for the Purples with 27 points of his own, but the fact that they received a poor contribution from their teammates led to a loss that ended AAK’s path in the factory.
Holon had quite a few moments of weakness, the guarding in the rebound was not very good, but it managed to come back twice from a ten-point deficit including in the first overtime, so they provided a 0:10 run in less than two minutes to force a second overtime. Tajir Makol, in his Champions debut, missed an opportunity to decide the game after 40 minutes when he missed two penalty shots, but in the end Amit Sharaf’s team came out victorious. and by and large.
Now, Holon has two more games in the Champions League and it will have to be at its peak so that all the hard work it has done does not go down the drain. The purples’ next game will be their most important of the season when they will be hosted by Prometheus and they will have to win by a margin of ten points or more to create an advantage against them. going to be interesting.
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