Cadet national team maintains perfect record at European Championship
The Israeli cadet national basketball team (under 16) remained undefeated today, Saturday, after two games at the European Championship. Following their victory over Georgia, Guy Kaplan's squad defeated Greece 89:84. In the first half, the Greeks were superior and went into the locker rooms with a 51:40 lead. The national team came out completely differently for the third quarter, with aggressive defense and determination, forcing a balanced game that lasted until the end. Yanai Lachmanovich, Maor Sela, and Rotem Ben David made the right plays in the decisive minutes and secured the win. Tomorrow, Sunday, at 20:30, Israel will face Spain in a game that will conclude the group stage.
The Israeli cadet national basketball team (under 16) remained undefeated today, Saturday, after two games at the European Championship. Following their victory over Georgia, Guy Kaplan's squad defeated Greece 89:84. In the first half, the Greeks were superior and went into the locker rooms with a 51:40 lead. The national team came out completely differently for the third quarter, with aggressive defense and determination, forcing a balanced game that lasted until the end. Yanai Lachmanovich, Maor Sela, and Rotem Ben David made the right plays in the decisive minutes and secured the win. Tomorrow, Sunday, at 20:30, Israel will face Spain in a game that will conclude the group stage.
After an even start, Greece's Giorgos Monamas made it 19:12. Ori Frishman provided a three-pointer, but by the end of the quarter, Greece led 23:15. Monamas continued to be the standout for Greece in the second quarter as well, and the gap grew to 28:19. Throughout the quarter, Israel could not find a solution to the Greek attack and the easy points under the basket, but managed to stay in the game, and a three-pointer by Lachmanovich cut the lead to 39:34. Eight consecutive points by the Greeks gave them an 11-point lead at halftime (51:40).
The third quarter opened with a 13:4 run by Israel, and the gap narrowed to just 55:53. The Israeli defense worked well, and after long minutes, the score was tied with a basket by Lachmanovich (58:58). Nitzan Klein even turned the score around with a free throw, but the Greeks immediately regained the lead — 63:60 after the third quarter. The game remained balanced, and with five minutes left, the scoreboard showed 72:71 for Greece. Every time Israel scored, Greece did the same, until a steal by Sela led to easy points for Lachmanovich, who secured an 83:82 lead with a minute and a half left. Both teams recorded turnovers, and in a critical attack, Ben David managed to produce points, leading to an 85:82 advantage. Until the end, the team maintained the gap and recorded another victory.
Scorers for Israel: Maor Sela (10 rebounds) 20 points, Yanai Lachmanovich 16, Rotem Ben David (7 assists, 6 rebounds) 15, Ido Ziv 12, Ilay Saruya 11, Nitzan Klein (7 rebounds) 9, Omer Solomon and Ori Frishman 3 each.
