JERUSALEM, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- EuroLeague leader Hapoel Tel Aviv defeated Red Star Belgrade 84-78 in the competition's 16th round of matches on Tuesday night.
In its first season in Europe's top basketball competition, Hapoel hosted a EuroLeague game in Israel for the first time ever. The team had previously been forced to play home games in Bulgaria due to the security situation in Israel.
The game was held at Pais Arena in Jerusalem, as Hapoel's regular home court, Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, was unavailable because of a music concert scheduled before the EuroLeague decided in late November to allow games to return to Israel.
In front of 9,000 fans, the opening quarter was evenly contested and ended in a 21-21 tie.
Hapoel took a slim lead in the second quarter thank to points from Dan Oturu and strong rebounding by Collin Malcolm, going into halftime ahead 40-37 after Red Star's Ebuka Izundu cut the deficit late.
Red Star opened the second half strongly, with Jared Butler and Jordan Nwora sparking a run that gave the visitors a 52-45 lead midway through the third quarter.
Hapoel responded through Elijah Bryant and Oturu, regaining the lead at 61-59 after three quarters.
The game remained tight in the final period until Antonio Blakeney scored key baskets to give Hapoel a 78-73 advantage with two minutes remaining. After Nwora hit a three-pointer for Red Star, critical scores by Chris Jones sealed the win.
Bryant led Hapoel with 28 points and nine rebounds. Oturu added 18 points, while Jones finished with 15. Butler scored 27 points for Red Star.
Hapoel improved to a 12-4 win-loss record on top of the 20-team EuroLeague table, while Red Star fell to 9-7.
Hapoel next plays Panathinaikos in Greece on Thursday, while Red Star hosts Virtus Bologna on Friday. ■
