Kats says Maccabi arrive battered and tired for Game 3 of the finals

Maccabi Tel Aviv will host Hapoel Tel Aviv on Sunday in Game 3 of the championship series, with the yellow team hoping to win for a third straight time and secure another Israeli title. The article was published on June 20, 2026, at 19:43.

Maccabi coach Oded Kattz said the team is looking forward to playing again in front of its home crowd, but admitted the squad is physically drained after a hard second game. “The second game was very difficult, but in the end we did the job,” he said. “We have a lot to improve, and I hope it will show in the game.”

Kattz said the club would decide on its lineup only on the morning of the game. “We are very battered and tired,” he said, adding that early foul trouble in the last game hurt his team and that he hopes to avoid it this time. He said he wants to see more hustle plays, such as steals and offensive rebounds, and stressed the need for consistency and urgency: “It’s a championship game, we do not care that there are still two games to fix it.”

Guard Jimmy Clark also said the series is not over. “We have not finished the job, we still need one win, and we are playing in front of our home crowd, that is what matters,” he said. Clark called Maccabi a very united team and said he wants to continue the club’s long-standing “Maccabi DNA” tradition and bring the team to where it belongs.