Hapoel Beer Sheva/Dimona Advances to Quarterfinals in Basketball Cup

Hapoel Beer Sheva/Dimona secured their spot in the Winner Cup quarterfinals by defeating Maccabi Rishon LeZion 84-75 on Tuesday. They will now face Hapoel Tel Aviv in the next round.

Guard Lovell Cabbil was the standout player for Beer Sheva/Dimona, delivering his best performance of the tournament with 32 points, 6 assists, and 6 steals. Golan Gutt also contributed 17 points for the winning team.

Despite an early double-digit lead built by Cabbil in the first quarter, Rishon LeZion mounted a comeback, taking a 41-35 lead by halftime. However, Beer Sheva/Dimona regrouped in the second half, with Cabbil regaining his scoring touch and Gutt hitting crucial three-pointers to seal the victory.

For Rishon LeZion, V.J. King scored 17 points and Kuva Grant added 14, but their efforts were not enough. Coach Doug Spradley of Beer Sheva/Dimona will be pleased with Cabbil's performance, which suggests the team is stabilizing after preseason drama. However, Amari Bailey's unimpressive debut with only 2 points in 10 minutes is a concern. Rishon LeZion's coach Guy Kaplan noted the need for improvement in three-point shooting and ball security.