Number 10 – Lionel Ketch
In an evening of two screens at the same time, we watched two legendary number 10s keep their careers alive.
While Leo Messi wobbled on the grass in Qatar and brought his entire country to the final, Oded Ketch gave his best game of the season on the lines in Milan, beating one of the greatest European coaches, and unleashing the atomic pressure cooker that threatened to explode around him and in the boardroom.
He was sharp and precise, lived the game and felt it throughout, and above all raised a level in building his fives and stabilizing the hierarchy.
And most importantly, the team and the coach showed a graph on her, improvement and learning, something that was really missing from the beginning of the season.
After a mediocre and not aggressive enough first half (0 free throws for Maccabi), a dynamic and intense group came out of the locker room, won the second half 45:31, and closed out a nice victory.
Here, maybe it connects.
In the Fives plan: the empowering material poverty
The truth is that the absence of Poyters and Baldwin does not really create shortages, because Maccabi has a deep and (too) long roster, and in fact the thinning finally created a regular rotation of ten players.
The first five was finally suitable and not just good, with two defensive/team/connection players (Hollins and Cohen), all of whom have a defined role.
For the first time this season, Maccabi did not fall behind early, and Ketch's precise substitutions maintained the configuration of three guards and two talls, with slight nuances.
Jake Cohen exits, Sorkin enters, Hollins exits, John Dee enters.
catch
The victory that will save him?, photo: AFP
For each position there are two or three players who take turns but maintain the structure.
Beautiful, true and stable.
A player who understands what is expected of him and takes a significant part in the game, raises his level of commitment and responsibility.
The number of substitutions by the Yellows also decreased significantly - from the record of 40 against Bayern there were only 30 yesterday, and the second quarter is still the weakest quarter for Maccabi (only 11 points in the whole quarter) and for the coach (ten substitutions per quarter).
Regarding the exchanges - much is less.
go go Israel
From the beginning of the season, I claim that Maccabi will not succeed without its Israelis, and that even if it wins a game or two against the pure foreigners, it will not make it an interesting, exciting team or one that can be learned from.
And it's not exactly the different citizenship, but the nature and responsibility that Maccabi's Israelis take on the team.
Roman Sorkin is currently the second most important player in Maccabi, changing games and deciding them as he did in Milan.
The reintegration of Jake Cohen into the hierarchy has given Maccabi a lot of intelligence and teamwork, and John Dee is Ketsch's sixth best player.
In a situation of 57:47 to Milan, 3 minutes to the end of the third quarter, Maccabi seemed to be going for another loss and maybe a total disintegration.
Then the coach brought in the band JJ (Jake and John), and together with Sorkin they ran 12:0 and turned the game around.
If you look at the plus minus column it is really blatant.
The Israeli with 6+, Jake Cohen with 8+, and in John D's 13 minutes Maccabi won by 16 points!!!
In contrast, most of the foreigners, including Brown, with a negative result when they were on the field.
Nivo, photo: AFP
Only Colson 2+ and Hollins who also plays for the team and ties it with 8+.
So, as mentioned, Ketch made a change that was partly due to lack of choice, but he must continue to deepen the use of the "secondary" players, because they are actually the critical ones for victories.
The change happens both in the defense that tightens up and in the attack that connects.
And the other number: 47:15 overwhelming victory for Maccabi's bench over that of Milan in points.
which was to prove.
Stephen Brown
In Baldwin's absence, Brown seems to be taking on more, and far too much.
He is neither a soloist nor an egotist, but it is evident that he is tired of losing, and I think he has decided that he will take the responsibility for the victory on himself.
It comes from frustration and not ego, but Ketch must change its use.
As mentioned above - Brown played 35 minutes, far too many, mainly because Maccabi can play well even when he is on the bench, much thanks to the wisdom of Jaylen Adams, who took on a role almost opposite to the one he had in Jerusalem.
He only scores when he has to, but guards, passes, takes more rebounds than the taller ones and also talks and communicates and brings the team together.
Maccabi should continue the contract with him, which expires soon.
There were minutes when Brown really got in the way, dribbling with strengths that Velvkin was proud of, and lost stupid balls.
The back line Adams and John are pretty good enough to hold the team even without Brown for a few good minutes, and especially a better guard.
A point to think about.
The Troubles of Messina
I don't envy Ettore Messina and Dan Shamir, who go from place to place with a ninth consecutive loss, last place, and continue to hold the only zero in the table - the fate of not winning a single game at home, worse than Maccabi's away streak, which was finally broken.
They are indeed injured and missing a lot, but there is no game method there, there is no replacement coordinator for Pangus, Nicolas Meli continues to give gifts to Maccabi since 2014, who, like his entire team, leaves a lot of points on the line and with silly turnovers, and the team continues to age Giorgio Armani in the stands
The only asset left for Messina is Kyle Heinz, a true Euroleague legend who needs to besiege every moment of his time on the pitch.
The trainer uses it like the Apollo 13 crew used their only remaining battery to return to Earth.
Sparingly, gently, brake gas, in and out.
And although Maccabi met a weak, lacking, and messy team, this victory is not obvious.
And to paraphrase Dettner's famous sentence to Bazooka in the movie "The Band": until you don't win away the first time, you won't win away the second time.
And here on Friday there is an opportunity to return from the land of the boot with two victories.
And it is said: Arivadarchi.
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