By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Maccabi Ramat-Gan put up a fight, but AEK Betsson at home was simply the better team and in the end, prevailed and started their Basketball Champions League season in Group E with a home win.
Thanks to an inspired Prentiss Hubb who finished the game with 28 points on 7/12 threes, AEK closed the game the right way as Hubb scored back-to-back a three and then a four-point play to make the final score 80-71.
Hunter Hale added 16 points and Grant Golden had 14 for the home side, which trailed momentarily only once but couldn’t build a double-digit advantage at any point of the game.
Kendale McCullum with 21 points and Amin Stevens with 18 tried their best for the guests, who never really got a chance to get the momentum and at least tie the game.
“Hubb took charge”
As AEK coach Dragan Sakota admitted: “It is important to start with a win, especially since we are playing at home. It is the first official match of the season. This team has had a few training sessions with all the players. We limited Ramat Gan, a team that in the last two games put up almost 200 points, to 71 points, with low (16%) three-point percentages. We had players who made the right decisions at the crucial point”.
Of course, coach Sakota means Hubb: “For the first time, we changed the starting five. In the 2nd quarter, we played strong in defense. I’ll keep this one. We changed three defenses on the pick-and-roll. It’s not easy to do if you haven’t worked. In the second half, Hubb took responsibility for important plays. Our reaction was important”.
Postgame press conference
Photo credit: Basketball Champions League