Maccabi Tel Aviv knew that the task in Istanbul against Fenerbahce was not going to be easy, and that a loss could be accepted with understanding. However, with how the game has developed, the Yellows can come out disappointed after another loss, and once again the team has failed to record a third consecutive victory in the Euroleague since the start of the season.
Only two players of the Israeli champion scored in double digits – Elijah Bryant with 18 and Scotty Wilbkin with 15. Yannis Sapropoulos got a particularly weak evening from Othello Hunter and Angelo Cloiaro, and a good first quarter by Dragon Bender and Tyler Dorsey’s flickers were not enough Throughout the 40 minutes. Dorsey said at the end: “We showed fighting spirit, but we had to get stops in the fourth quarter and we didn’t. We were in the game, but Dyson Pierre scored some hard shots and it gave them the lead they needed in the fourth quarter. From that point it was hard to come back.”
Although Maccabi is only two games away from eighth place, a look at the game board does not bode well for the team. With 12 games to the end of the regular season, it is estimated that the team that qualifies from eighth place will need at least 17 wins, which means that the Yellows will have to win at least 7 games out of the remaining 12 rounds. For that to happen, Maccabi must keep the house, where it has more meetings with CSKA Moscow and Barcelona, and achieve at least two victories in away games – a scenario that currently seems like a particularly difficult task.
Maccabi did a lot yesterday to postpone the game against Andulo this coming Thursday. The Yellows already knew in the afternoon that there was no possibility of the Turkish rival landing in Israel, but the Euroleague announcement on the matter came out only near the time of last night’s game. The club claim that the option to stay in Turkey and play the game was not considered, and if it had been raised it would have been rejected due to the desire to play the game in the hall, rather than “donate” a home game as a gift to Andulo. In addition, the possibility that the Turks would make the route of Maccabi back to Israel, via Athens, was unrealistic because of the additional cost that Andulo had to pay for a flight to Athens, and also because of the technical matters of the Turks. At the moment, there is still no new date for the game between the two teams.
In light of the postponement of Maccabi Tel Aviv’s game against Andulo Zero in the Euroleague, the Yellows will host Gilboa Galil this coming Friday, January 29 at 13:30 – a game that was supposed to take place last Saturday in the 10th round.
