The Israeli team benefited from a healed roster to beat Joventut when the chips were down.
Hapoel delivered at crunch time amid injuries and tough schedule
![Hapoel delivered at crunch time amid injuries and tough schedule](https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/e179c36d-c0dd-416b-9ebe-6571f67b355b.jpg?crop=1080%3A607%3Anowe%3A270%3A100)
Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv made a big step towards a top-two finish in Group A of the BTK EuroCup after a smooth team effort produced an 85-91 win at Joventut Badalona in Round 17 of the regular season, with five players scoring in double digits.
Crucially, the return to action of J’Covan Brown and Jaylen Hoard helped Hapoel’s effort as the duo stepped up to the plate in the second half after they recovered from injuries in time for the clash.
Brown poured 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting from downtown and Hoard chipped in with 11, including a spectacular dunk which kept Hapoel in the driving seat in the wake of a Joventut fightback.
Hapoel carved out a 25-45 lead in the second quarter and extended it to 58-80 early in the fourth quarter, with Brown and Hoard taking over in the second half. They complemented the efforts of Will Cummings, the game’s top scorer with 19 points, as well as Xavier Munford, who netted 16 as Joventut cut the gap in the home stretch but fell short in its effort to turn the game around.
Head coach Danny Franco elaborated that it hasn’t been an easy ride for Hapoel this season, which has played EuroCup home games in Belgrade due to the conflict in Israel. The team was also ravaged by injuries, which made it difficult for Franco to count on a stable roster.
"We came out today with a lot of guys back from injuries and we arrived knowing we needed to produce a high quality performance against Spanish opposition," Franco told the post-game press conference. "My players came up big time and we really stepped up as a team. It’s a big win for us."
Hapoel play their last regular season game on the road at Besiktas Emlakjet Istanbul, with the fixture moved to Ljubljana’s Stozice Arena on the recommendations of the Turkish and Israeli governments. A win would seal a runners-up finish in the group and with it a bye in the first knockout round of the postseason, meaning direct passage to the quarterfinals. Franco hoped for a fit roster amid a grueling schedule, which has taken its toll on Hapoel.
"We will now make an effort to finish second. We’ve done a good job for much of the regular season," said Franco. "We weren’t always at our best because of injuries and our schedule was such that two days a week we were flying back and forth and two or three days a week we were playing."
“We don’t have enough time to work together as a team but we will try to beat another very good side next week."