Quarter Finals - First Leg
By Lior Klinger
Game 1 of the quarter finals took place on Thursday the 26th.
Game 2 will be played this Monday (the 30th). Following the cup update there
is a little Eurocup update, which features the draw for the next stage.
Maccabi Ramat Hen 95 - YES Ramat Hasharon 92
Ramat Hen blew a big chance to open up a gap going into the 2nd and deciding
game in Ramat Hasharon on Monday. They led in double figures for the most
part of the game, but in the closing minutes Ramat Hasharon gained momentum
and trimmed the lead to three. Ramat Hen will have a 3 pt advantage Monday
but, in Ramat Hasharon's defense, they didn't play well and almost won.
Ramat Hen opened the game with a 14-2 run, as Monika Kovac nailed 2 threes
and Vicky Hall scored 6 points. Following a timeout Ramat Hasharon answered
with a 9-0 run to cut it 14-11, but a Simone Edwards 3pt play sparked
another local run, and they led 28-15 after one. Hall was the leading scorer
with 11 points on 100% shooting, Ramat Hasharon's D was in trouble.
Hall made it a 15 pt game early in the 2nd but Rhonda Mapp kept her team in
it. With 1:40 left in the half the gap was again 15, as Ramat Hen was
hitting from everywhere on the court. The visitors replied with 3 threes and
trailed just 55-45 at the break. Ramat Hen's percentages were quite freaky
with Hall and Edwards leading the way with 17 & 15 pts respectively. Lidiya
Varbanova led Ramat Hasharon with 12 pts, Rhonda Mapp added 9 and Gulsah
Akkaya had 7. Tracy Reid had just 4 as Mariana Raguz was doing a terrific
job on her.
The pace slowed down a bit in the 3rd, but it was still more of the same.
Ramat Hen dominated and led 76-64 after 3. Tracy Reid opened the 4th quarter
with a hoop, but then the 24 seconds shot clock began messing up and the
game was paused for several minutes. It continued breaking down through out
the 4th quarter. Ramat Hasharon stayed focused and chewed away at the lead.
It was just eight when Hall found Simone with a great pass to push it back
to 78-68, with 7 minutes to play. To make a long story short, Ramat Hen was
still up ten with 2:30 left, 90-80. Mapp then scored from the line and Ramat
Hasharon got a key stop. Limor Mizrachi & Ina Gourevitch cut it to just 4
and Ramat Hen's ten-point lead seemed like ancient history. Edwards scored
to give her team some breathing room, 93-87, but Mizrachi answered right
back with a big 3. This was the closest Ramat Hasharon has been since the
1st quarter. With 14 seconds to go Lena Fedulova got an 'and 1' but missed
the free throw. Down 95-90, Limor Mizrachi drove the lane and got the basket
at the buzzer.
For Ramat Hen:
Simone Edwards: 26 pts (9/16 FGs, 8/9 FTs), 18 rebs
Vicky Hall: 27 pts (10/14 FGs, 6/7 FTs)
Marianna Raguz: 16 pts (7/11 FGs, 2/2 FTs)
Monika Kovac: 12 pts (4/5 FGs, 2/2 FTs)
For Ramat Hasharon:
Lidiya Varbanova: 20 pts (9/11 FGs, 2/2 FTs), 6 rebs
Ina Gourevitch: 18 pts (5/10 FGs, 7/9 FTs)
Rhonda Mapp: 17 pts (7/10 FGs, 2/2 FTs), 4 rebs
Gulsah Akkaya: 14 pts (6/9 FGs), 4 rebs, 3 assts
Limor Mizrachi: 13 pts (5/11 FGs), 4 rebs, 3 assts
Tracy Reid: 10 pts (5/8 FGs)
Elizur Ramla 89 - Hapoel Haifa/Motzkin 63
Ramla most likely secured its spot in the cup semi finals.
Liron Cohen continued her good form with 24 pts, Jackie Johnson added 19 for
the winners.
Lili Latinovic led Haifa/Motzkin with 19 points.
Maccabi Raanana 71 - Maccabi Ashdod 60
Raanana takes an 11-point lead to Ashdod on Monday. Looks promising but far
from over.
For Raanana:
Nomi Kolodny 19 pts
Edwina Brown 15 pts
For Ashdod:
Kenya Larkin 16 pts
Vika Rudovski 12 pts
Bnei Yehuda 84 - Elizur Holon 67
Big win for Bnei Yehuda, hard to see Holon winning by more than 17 at home
and making the semis.
For Bnei Yehuda:
Tawona Alhaleem 30 pts
Ina Boutenko 16 pts
For Holon:
Juana Brown 19 pts
Yulia Rozova 16 pts
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A short Eurocup update from Round 6. The four Israeli teams
played meaningless road games:
Ramat Hen won in Adana 65-49. Vicky Hall had 17 pts, Marianna Raguz had 16
and Rivi Grinboym added 10.
Ramat Hasharon won in Red Star Belgrad 82-72, Tracy Reid led them with 18
pts, Gulsah Akkaya had 16.
Raanana lost in Astir, 47-62. Edwina Brown scored 17 pts, Snjeana Vasic had
10.
Bnei Yehuda lost in Burgas 63-75. Tawona Alhaleem & Ina Boutenko scored 15
pts each.
Ramat Hen and Ramat Hasharon advanced to the next stage. The 16 teams that
made it were divided by draw into 4 groups. The top 2 in each group will
make the quarter finals. Ramat Hasharon is in group B with Kozachka Zalk
(UKR), Chevakata (RUS) and Ano Liosia (GRE). Ramat Hen will play in group A
along with Provance (FRA), Dynamo (RUS) and Sofia (BUL). Games will resume
on Feb 5th.
Information reprinted with permission of Lior Klinger and Orli Klinger. Send an e-mail to be put on the mailing list.