By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Elijah Bryant dropped a 21-point performance to lead Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv to a tough 80-77 victory against visiting Khimki Moscow Region for Round 23 of Turkish Airlines EuroLeague.
With a little over a minute to go into the game, Tyler Dorsey (12 points) gave the Israeli side a 77-76 advantage, while Devin Booker tied the score with a free throw. Bryant stepped up to place Giannis Sfairopoulos’ team ahead once again in the final minute with consecutive back-to-back points that handed Maccabi the victory.
Fiesty Khimki challenges Maccabi
Maccabi bounced back from a two-game losing streak through thick and thin, as the Russian side stayed in charge during the first half, leading 47-36 at halftime. Bryant paced Maccabi to a comeback into the third period and soon enough the score was tied to 60 points right before the fourth period, in which the hosts survived, improving to a 15-8 record in the EuroLeague standings.
“I love how we played in the second half. To receive 47 points in one half and 30 in the second, this is a big issue. And, of course, after good defense, we had also rhythm on offense and we scored some transition points, easy points, and you saw how we fought to the end. It was a derby until the end, but the most important thing is that we fought and we deserved to win the game”, commented Giannis Sfairopoulos after the victory
Apart from Bryant, Deni Avdija also played his part into the victory, exiting the court with nearly double-double figures (11 points, 9 rebounds), while Othello Hunter posted 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Alexey Shved and Jonas Jerebko tapped 18 and 17 points each, though their performances weren’t enough to help Khimki bounce back from its two-game losing streak.
Photo: EuroLeague