Maccabi Tel Aviv beat Hapoel Tel Aviv 96-75 in the opening game of the Israeli playoff final, in a performance that the article says reminded many of the club’s dominant eras. Despite arriving with a shortened and depleted roster, Maccabi looked sharper, better organized and more desperate than its city rival, and the result was presented as a statement that the yellow club still knows how to control the biggest moments.
The tactical edge went to coach Oded Katash, who quickly identified Hapoel’s weak points and repeatedly attacked the paint through pick-and-roll action. Hapoel coach Dimitris Itoudis tried different lineups, substitutions and ideas, but none of them changed the flow of the game. The article says the biggest gap was not talent but adjustment and execution.
The different condition of the two backcourts stood out as well. Maccabi’s guard play was led by Lundberg, who controlled the pace, made the right decisions and gave confidence to his teammates. On the other side, Vasilije Micic looked frustrated, lost the ball and had one of those games in which nothing works. The piece also notes that Maccabi played without several important players but still looked like a complete team, while Hapoel’s offense was limited when Micic struggled and Yam Madar could not take over.
Maccabi also won the effort battle, getting to loose balls first, defending with more aggression and rebounding with greater hunger. The article stresses that this was only Game 1 and Hapoel still has enough talent, plus an experienced coach, to adjust, with Madar, Jones and Micic unlikely to be this ineffective again. Even so, the message from the opener was clear, Maccabi still has the crucial edge of showing up for decisive games as if winning is its natural state.
