1. "Scotty helps Maccabi again"
At 18:25, only a few dozen fans were scattered around the stands in the old Yad Eliyahu neighborhood.
When a few of those few noticed a curly-haired man coming up the stairs, they went into ecstasy.
Without prior coordination, they stood up and clapped.
Not seconds passed, and the first selfie was published.
Scotty Wilvkin returned and none of those present at Menorah Mivathim Hall remained indifferent.
Maccabi Tel Aviv and its fans know how to embrace lost sons when they return as rivals.
The singing before me, the applause at the introduction of the actors, the awarding of the framed jersey - everything seemed to proceed as usual;
But nothing was ordinary or routine about Wilbkin's comeback to the city.
He even gave a bouquet of flowers to the team, on behalf of Fenerbahçe, who wanted to thank Israel for the assistance after the disaster in Turkey.
And then, rather strangely, something unexpected happened: the basketball game began.
And there, to put it mildly, Wilbkin was a little less heroic.
Yesterday (Wednesday), in a special interview with Walla!
Sport, recalls the star whose first appearance in the Euroleague he made in the hall, as a Drushpaka player.
He then hit 1-for-5 from three, and a year later he was stuck at 2-for-8.
This time he shot unconsciously, and without a target.
1 of 8.
At the exit there was someone who said, "We missed the games in the hall where Scotty helps Maccabi so much."
John DiBartholomew's numbers (photo: Danny Maron)
2. Everything goes through Pierre
Wilbkin's move to Fenerbahçe was analyzed in Israel mainly around the financial exit that Maccabi Tel Aviv gained through it, and the opportunities that opened up for it to land Wade Baldwin and Lorenzo Brown.
He had another angle: it was hard not to be intrigued as to how he would function and whether he would break through next to a real coordinator and an almost perfect game manager like Nick Kalathis, who he missed so much in his four years in Israel.
It goes without saying that Velvkin was not required to score as much as he had to in his previous yellow team, but it's hard to say that the move did him any good personally.
This season, at least so far, illustrates why he will always be considered one of the best guards in the Euroleague - but will remain one step below the truly greats, such as Shane Larkin, Vasa Micic and Mike James.
It's not yesterday's game that determines it, nor his appalling percentages.
But more, and above all - the way in which the Israeli opponent planned its tactics, which illustrates the devaluation of the American's status.
It was not Vilvkin who employed Oded Ketch in the preparation for the game, but Kalathis.
The coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv wanted to take the sting out of the real leader of Fenerbahce, and decided to place a high guard on him (Jarrell Martin).
So far everything is logical, desirable and even required.
But this move had a secondary effect, and someone like Dimitris Itoudis noticed it immediately.
Every attack by the Turks started with a post-up by Dyshawn Pierre on Lorenzo Brown, who had no answer;
He took the center shorter than him to the basket time after time, managed the team operation from the post - and in less than six minutes the guests flew to 3:15, when he himself already had ten points.
Fenner finished the first quarter with 25, a rate of 100 for the entire game, even though she was 2 of 12 for threes (an 8 of 48 rate, if you do the math).
21 of those points came from Pierre and Nigel Hayes-Davies at the two forward positions.
Two lost stars.
Wade Baldwin in front of Scotty Wilbkin (photo: Danny Maron)
3. From 12% to 80% in one quarter
When Ketsch had to tearfully announce his retirement from basketball, he had one sentence that was more inspiring than any other.
"I feel like a painter without paints," he said then, and he certainly felt the same way yesterday (albeit in slightly less tragic circumstances from a sporting point of view).
When he got to the second quarter, when the boos and the stressful murmur began to increase with each time-out or briefing on the bench, it was possible to analyze the situation of Maccabi Tel Aviv and understand the depth of the hole in which it is: Jaylen Adams, Austin Hollins and Alex Poithers are no longer relevant;
Josh Nieveau hasn't scored a basket since Wilbkin's days at the University of Florida;
The early lag alongside Baldwin and Darren Hilliard's quick entanglement in fouls prevented any possibility of resting Brown;
And in the absence of guards who could form a low and fast trio, the possibility of moving Bonzie Colson to the power forward position also fell out of the picture.
In his regret, the yellow coach turned to the districts he doubtless believed in in the first place.
He moved to a tall lineup with Martin as a small forward, finally freeing up to focus on Wilbekin on the tactical side.
Just not on the flattering side.
Maccabi Tel Aviv began to attack the American guard and play on him and his less successful defensive game.
And when he went down to the bench, she played on Marko Godorić (the true enforcer of Fenerbahçe in the back line), and mostly avoided matchups against Pierre, Hayes and Devin Booker.
And it worked.
After 1 of 8 for two (12%) and minus eight on the board in the first quarter, the host went 8 of 10 (80%) from that range and plus 12 in the second quarter.
The Turks' unbridled shelling from beyond the arc, 3-for-17, certainly didn't hurt her.
And for a considerable part of this transformation, even if it is not reflected in the statistics, Jake Cohen is responsible.
And not a word about Tyler Dorsey (photo: Danny Maron)
4. Two career highs, a season high and two near-highs
And in the end, Maccabi Tel Aviv owes the victory - one must say, another victory - to its captain.
John DiBartholomew is having the best season of his career, and that's nothing new;
You don't always see it in the numbers, and he isn't the most stable address in the area, but the perfect timing in which he executes the right actions deserves to be taught in basketball schools.
He finished yesterday's game with 2 of 6 from the field, reaching an index of 21 in 25 minutes.
Season record in the index, career highs in steals (4) and foul squeeze (7), near season highs in points (10) and rebounds (6), matching season high in assists (3).
DiBartholomeo did all of this yesterday, and in front of all of this stands one statistic, seemingly random: in 27 appearances this season, there was only one time when he lost more than one ball.
And so, on an evening when Brown and Baldwin finished with three assists and six turnovers, Maccabi Tel Aviv found the way to win.
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John DiBartholomew