Hapoel Jerusalem wins in Belgrade to stay alive

In a must-win game, Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem escaped from Hala Pionir in Belgrade with a huge 64-83 win over Partizan NIS to stay alive in Group E. Jerusalem improved to 2-6 and kept its chances to advance to the next round, while Partizan saw its possibilities disappear. Jerusalem used a 6-15 run in the third quarter to get a 51-60 advantage, then another 4-15 charge in the second part of the fourth sealed their win. Joseph Jones led the winners with 16 points, Derwin Kitchen added 15, Bracey Wright had 14 and Pops Mensah-Bonsu 11. Milan Macvan amassed 26 points and 12 rebounds and Mihajlo Andric mad 5 for 8 from downtown for 18 points in defeat.

Dragan Milosavljevic hit a three to open the score for the home team. Wright tied the game at 6-6 by finishing on the break. Vanja Marinkovic’s huge dunk gave a 10-6 margin to Partizan. A mid-range jumper by Wright put Jerusalem up 12-13. Macvan and Donta Smith exchanged layups to make it 14-15 for the guests at the end of the quarter. Andric from downtown put the home team ahead 21-16, but 6 points in a row by Wright gave a 23-24 cushion to the visiting team. The lead changed hands several times in a balanced phase of the game, with Boris Dallo dunking to tie it at 33-33 before he and Kitchen exchanged baskets to finish the half at 37-35 for the black-and-white.

Andric from the three-point range opened the scoring after the intermission, but 5 points in a row by Jones and a layup from Lior Eliyahu put the guests in front 42-48. Andric, with a mid range jumper and a triple, brought Partizan to within 49-50, before Tony Gaffney slammed the ball and Yotam Halperin completed a fast break for a 51-62 advantage. Macvan scored close to the buzzer to keep the hosts alive 53-62. A rare three-pointer scored by Mensah-Bonsu extended the cushion to 57-69 for Jerusalem, then he also put his hands on the game with an astonishing dunk and a jumper for a 59-73 lead. Halperin hit a three and Mensah-Bonsu dunked again and also scored the additional free throw to raise the margin to 61-81 and seal the victory.