Poythress, Brown help Maccabi lift third straight Winner Cup in dramatic fashion / News - Basketnews.com

Maccabi needed 45 minutes to hold off city rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv and win their third consecutive Winner Cup title.

Credit: Winner League Credit Winner League

After two consecutive EuroLeague victories, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv returned to home soil for the Winner Cup final against city rivals Hapoel Tel Aviv and the first derby of the season.

2-pointers this season

52%22,0Points made:22,0Accuracy:52,4%Place in standings:3Record max:26Record min:17Most made 2FGs:Roman SorkinTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

Alex Poythress paved the way for Maccabi to clinch a dramatic 88-84 (24-16, 23-20, 15-17, 11-20, 15-11) win with 24 points (12/17 FG), 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks. Lorenzo Brown followed with 20 (8/16 FG), 9 assists and 5 turnovers and 2 steals. Roman Sorkin contributed another 12 points on 6/9 from the field, plus 8 rebounds and 4 assists in an all-around performance.

Bonzie Colson (11) and Wade Baldwin (10) were the other two Maccabi players to score in double digits.

Credit Winner League

That's Maccabi's third straight and tenth overall Winner Cup win. The last time Maccabi did not win the Winner's Cup, Oded Kattash stood on the sidelines as Jerusalem's coach.

On the other hand, Xavier Munford racked up 23 points for Hapoel (8/18 FG, 5/5 FT) and 4 assists, while Jordan McRae chipped in 17 and 5 rebounds in a losing effort.

With less than two minutes left in regulation, Xavier Munford scored a layup and drew a foul from Baldwin, making it 73-72 for Maccabi. Colson, Brown and Poythress failed to retaliate, and Bar Timor evened the contest at 73 with 39 seconds remaining.

In the extra time, Hapoel stayed close, mainly thanks to McRae, Roman Sorkin and Lorenzo Brown gave Kattash's team a 5-point lead (86-81), and although Munford tried to change the game's fate, McRae and Horton couldn't make it a one-possession game again.

As is the case in the Winner League, Oded Kattash could only use five non-Israeli players: Lorenzo Brown, Wade Baldwin, Alex Poythress, Josh Nebo, and Bonzie Colson.

Maccabi beat Hapoel Gilboa/Galil 85-75 in the quarterfinals and Hapoel Holon 97-91 in the semis. The Reds subdued Kiryat Ata, Bnei Herzliya and Hapoel Jerusalem.

Danny Franco's team had a perfect balance in the league (5-0) and Eurocup (2-0) and this is the first derby in the knockout stage since the 1993-4 State Cup final (Maccabi won 64-53).

Scottie Wilbekin flew over with his wife from Istanbul to Tel Aviv in order to support his former team and witness the game from the stands.

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