Tiktekno: clip summarizing today's events in sports, 18.4/Sport1
Maccabi Tel Aviv passed last night (Thursday) in an almost smooth manner its test for the start of the Euroleague playoffs when it defeated Hapoel Haifa in a comfortable 73:108. The Yellows, who will host Hapoel Beer Sheva tomorrow (8:40 p.m.) in the final test, have already secured first place in front of the economy before the upper house, and if they beat the southern ones as well, they will be in a position where they have the possibility of losing one game and still finishing in first place and holding home runs throughout the playoffs .
The reason the transition was not entirely smooth was Rafi Manko's injury. The shooter, who did not participate in the big win over Basconia on Tuesday, was excellent last night, but at the beginning of the fourth quarter in a simple defensive action he landed on the leg of Amit Simhon and twisted his ankle. Manko was taken down to the dressing room by the medical team, and will be examined today as Maccabi hopes that he will not have to be absent for an extended period.
On the floor last night, Maccabi managed without its three biggest stars - Wade Baldwin and Josh Niebo did not dress in advance for the match, while Lorenzo Brown remained in the center to be with his wife who entered the delivery room. In their absence, there was concern that a close game would develop, but in practice the yellows finished the game long before halftime.
The stars of the game, besides Manko, were the pair of interior players Roman Sorkin and Hasiel Rivero, who scored 25 and 17 points respectively, but Maccabi was mainly proud of the game of Omar Meir who recorded 9 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists. "Omer shows what the future of Maccabi will look like," said one of the team members, "in two years he should already be a very central player here."
Meyer himself said that: "We played well, we returned to our principles and it was a fun victory. We don't mess with the sequence, but try to come every game and concentrate on the things that are under our control. Every day I learn something new on the field and off the field." When asked what he learns from a center like Tamir Blatt, the young guard replied: "Wow, I don't know where to start. Rhythms, timing, control - it's a privilege."