The Israeli champs prevailed in the face of adversity after winning the battle in the paint against the plucky visitors.
Sheer grit saw muscular Maccabi overpower Zalgiris
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Regular Season
Round 28 of 34
Regular Season
Maccabi Playtika Tel AvivMTA
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Zalgiris KaunasZAL
Overview
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Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (15-13) stayed firmly on course to reach the post-season with a gutsy 83-76 home win over Zalgiris Kaunas, having bounced back from a 52-60 deficit late in the third quarter thanks to ironclad defense in the fourth.
Wade Baldwin, who paced Maccabi with 16 points, credited the team’s second-string lineup that was on the court when the home team conjured a 20-7 run down the stretch to grab a 72-67 lead heading into the home straight.
“The group that was out there in the fourth quarter played extremely tough, we played through a lot of physicality on their side and then closed the game out,” Baldwin said after Maccabi prevailed in a nail-biting rollercoaster.
His teammate Bonzie Colson added: “We knew it was going to be a tough game because they’re an aggressive team. We got some stops and steals, so it was good work from us for sure.
“The mentality is that we play with grit and confidence and toughness too. When we do that we’re a dangerous team. We’ve got to stick to our principles and do what we do.”
Having struggled for long spells to match the brilliance that produced a 71-106 road blowout of ALBA Berlin in the previous round, Maccabi played to their strengths against a battling Zalgiris and racked up 39 boards, 14 of them on the offensive end.
The visitors managed only 4 offensive rebounds and 27 in total, which prompted head coach Andrea Trinchieri to acknowledge that being outmuscled in the paint ultimately made the difference.
“We were where we wanted to be in the last 2 minutes but then we made some bad decisions, turned over the ball and lost momentum,” said the Italian tactician. “One thing was missing though, the rebounding. In the EuroLeague, if you don’t rebound, you’re not going to win games.”
Handling the ball was also a key factor as Maccabi dished out 21 assists against 12 turnovers, while Zalgiris had 16 in each department.
Aggressive defending down the stretch on the visiting team’s top scorers Keenan Evans (18 points) and particularly Edmond Sumner (14) stifled out Zalgiris when the chips were down, allowing Maccabi to force the final twist with an 11-2 run.
Maccabi head coach Oded Kattash heaped praise on Zalgiris and ultimately lauded his team for showing trademark mettle to snatch victory when defeat looked the more likely outcome.
“We have to give Zalgiris credit, they played really well,” Kattash commented. “They are a well-coached team, it was an intense and aggressive game where nothing came easy for us. We stuck in there as a team and showed a lot of character, so it’s a big win for us. Obviously, reaching the playoffs remains our goal and we will keep fighting as every game from here on is important.”