The visiting team forced the final twist in the last few minutes of a rip-roaring contest
Strong start and finish powers Jerusalem past Cluj
Game Report
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Regular Season
Round 8 of 18
Regular Season
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U-BT Cluj-NapocaUBT
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Hapoel Midtown JerusalemJLM
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Overview
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Hapoel Midtown Jerusalem showed its depth to overcome U-BT Cluj Napoca 89-101 after breaking the club’s record for points scored in a single quarter and then seeing its 18-point lead wiped out in a spectacular EuroCup clash.
The Israeli team, which improved to 6-2 to move atop the Group A standings, looked set for plain sailing after shooting the lights out in the opening 10 minutes to carve out a whopping 21-38 advantage, sinking 6-of-7 from downtown as the points rained in from all angles. Cluj looked completely at sea and appeared bound for a drubbing as Jerusalem – which shattered the previous record of 34 points in a single quarter the club had accomplished on three separate occasions – continued to dominate in the second quarter.
The tide turned in the third as Cluj started to fire on all cylinders and produced a 32-13 run to take a 75-71 lead in the closing stages of the period, with Jerusalem’s livewire guard Jared Harper limping off with a cramp while the home crowd raised the decibel level through the roof.
The rollercoaster continued until the last few minutes of the game, when Jerusalem took the lead for good, 88-89, and steamrolled home thanks to flawless teamwork that saw six visiting players finish in double figures. The Israeli team was paced by the versatile Anthony Lamb, who amassed 17 points, 7 boards and 4 assists while Harper netted 16 points before he was forced to leave the game.
Lamb was delighted with the outcome as well as with the prospect of Jerusalem finally being able to play its home games back in the Israeli capital, having heaped praise on the club’s diehard fans.
“It’s good to get another win and carry on with the streak,” Lamb said in his post-game comments. We started really strong and scored a lot of points in the first quarter, but then they came on a run and attacked us the whole game from that point. We took the lead back and stayed strong in the fourth quarter.
“We are also grateful for the opportunity to get the (home) games back in Israel and we’re super excited for our fans. It’s what they deserve for showing us some much love, coming to all these away games. I am excited and ready for it."
After the game, Harper dispelled fears he would be sidelined for long. Standing on his feet and with a broad smile on his face, he said: “Thank you for your thoughts and concerns. I will be okay. I suffered an injury, but I’ll be back on the court soon. The team showed up and had a great win on the road.”
Cluj put up a great fight to get back into the game and looked capable of staging what would have amounted to an impressive comeback, but the hosts ran out of steam in the home straight and Jerusalem duly took advantage. Head coach Mihai Sivasan could only offer a wry smile as he conceded that a poor start ultimately cost his team, which used up all the gas in a valiant catch-up effort.
“It’s the third home game we’ve lost in the EuroCup, but it is what it is and we move forward,” he said. "It was the last game before the break in the competition. I am proud of how my guys fought in the second half, but unfortunately, we couldn’t finish the job. They were a little stronger in the last quarter and we couldn’t finish the comeback. We didn’t have the best night as we started slow and the first quarter was a mess as we were soft defensively.”
