Hapoel Tel-Aviv beat Maccabi Ashdod B.K. 81:67 in the Superliga on Sunday. The result keeps both sides level at one win from their opening game, though the gap between them widened on the court. It was a straightforward evening for the hosts.
We had called for a home victory at 52 per cent confidence, and that turned out right. The difference came from three-point shooting — Hapoel hit 11 of their 28 attempts while their visitors managed just six from 21. That spread opened the game early and never really closed.
And here's the thing, the rebounding battle was tighter than the score suggests. Hapoel pulled down 33 rebounds to 31, with a slight edge on the offensive glass. But once you factor in the shooting accuracy, those extra possessions didn't matter much. Maccabi kept things clean with only 13 turnovers against 10 for the hosts.
By then the game was running away from the away side. Hapoel's 31 field goals from 63 attempts gave them comfortable margins, while Maccabi's 27 from 62 meant they were chasing shadows. The assist numbers were close — 11 to 13 — which tells you both sides moved the ball reasonably well when they had chances.
The standings don't tell a great story yet. Both teams sit with one win, no losses, and zero points accumulated so far. That means the table is still empty, really. What matters is the form coming in, and Hapoel had been rolling with wins over Panathinaikos and Besiktas before this one.
Maccabi's recent results were mixed, including heavy defeats to Hapoel Eilat and Hapoel Jerusalem. They found a way to keep things respectable against Ironi Ness Ziona last time out, but this performance showed they're not quite up to the pace yet. One mistake ends it against a side like this.
