Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv hosts Anadolu Efes on Tuesday evening (19:30, Live on Sport5 - Channel 55) in Menora Mivtachim Arena as part of a Round 23 makeup game. For the first time this season, 1000 Yellow & Blue supporters will push Giannis Sfairopoulos's squad, hoping to stay alive in the playoff hunt against the Turkish team who's been in top form, winning seven consecutive games (25.2 points average margin of victory). 

These teams have faced each other 19 times since 2000, as history presents a slim 10:9 Turkish lead in the head-to-head battles between the two clubs. In the last meeting between the two sides, Maccabi dropped a thriller in Istanbul 89:91 to Anadolu Efes after the game produced numerous lead changes, but a bucket by Beaubois and a crucial turnover secured a Turkish victory.



"Tomorrow will be a big challenge for us against a very talented team, Anadolu has a quality squad, and these days, they are playing their best basketball this season", Said head coach Giannis Sfairopoulos about the opponent. "We need to be very aggressive, fight hard in every aspect of the game, and be ready to disorganize their game. Offensively, find a smart way to attack the defense they show us and not turn the ball over because they can punish quickly״. 

״We want to fight for our chances and show it on the court, and as the coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv, I'll do my best, even if mathematically we have a very slim chance to qualify, to fight in all games. For us, it's vital to play with dignity until the end".



Dragan Bender spoke towards the tough matchup: "They are in a really good place right now, playing basketball at a high level having strong guards who've been playing really well this season. It's going to be a challenge for us, but we are playing at home in front of our fans, and that gives us extra juice. We are looking forward to that challenge".

"It's going to be difficult stopping them, with the way they've been playing, winning 7 in a row. We will need to do our best as a team to prevent fastbreaks, limiting their scoring, and see what we can do on the offensive end", Told Scottie Wilbekin. "We are excited to play against them because they are among the best EuroLeague teams these days. The season is coming to an end with only a few games left, and we are trying to get as many wins as we can to give ourselves any chance to see if we can make the playoffs".

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Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv aspired to finish the Anadolu Efes incredible run on Tuesday evening, but Ergin Ataman's squad showed why they are among the top EuroLeague teams these days, beating the Yellow & Blue 66:90 in Menora Mivtachim Arena. With the loss, Maccabi's chances of clinching a spot between the top 8 slimmed another notch dropping their EuroLeague season record to 11:17. 

Giannis Sfairopoulos's squad had only three scorers in double digits tonight as Scottie Wilbekin finished the night with 15 points and 5 rebounds. Ante Zizic contributed 14 points, 6 boards, as Tyler Dorsey scored 10 points off the bench. The Israeli champions return to the Israeli Winner League on Thursday as they'll head out on the road to compete against Guy Goodes's Maccabi Rishon Le'Zion.



Game Recap: 

Giannis Sfairopoulos decided to open the contest with Chris Jones, Scottie Wilbekin, Elijah Bryant, Omri Casspi, and Ante Zizic, while on the other end, Vasilije Micic, Krunoslav Simon, Rodrigue Beaubois, Adrien Moerman, and Sertac Sanli opened for Efes.

Micic knocked down two three-pointers setting the tone early, but Casspi and Zizic responded, being Maccabi's top contributors scoring two buckets each as Wilbekin joined them with his first three points of the night, 9:13. 

Dragan Bender came off the bench and supplied efficient minutes on both ends of the floor, Shane Larkin drilled a three-pointer, and Othello Hunter closed out the quarter with 4 points closing the first quarter at 17:22.

The hosts managed to miss easy shots in the paint, as James Anderson opened and ended a 14:1 stretch with two deep triples, and Tibor Pleiss got it going scoring 8 consecutive points from all cylinders, giving the visitors their first double-digit advantage of the evening, 20:36. 



Wilbekin ended the drought with a shot from behind the arc, and Zizic worked his way in the paint for six straight points, totaling 10 first-half points, but Micic converted a three-point possession keeping a 16 point margin heading into halftime, 31:47.

Wilbekin, Zizic, and Dorsey scored 6 unanswered points for Maccabi, who came out strong from the break as Larkin followed with a triple, but Dorsey responded on the other end knocking down a three completing a 9:3 Tel Avivian run, 40:50.

After it seemed like Maccabi is slowly making its comeback, Simon, with overall great basketball and Larkin's back-to-back shots from behind the arc, blew those feelings away, leading the Turkish side to a 13:2 stretch and a night high 21 point margin. Bryant and Dorsey tried to reduce the score in the final minutes of the third, but Chris Singleton's four straight points set the score at 47:71, heading into the last 10 minutes.

The fourth quarter was only for the record books as Oz Blazer attempted to close the gap in the final minutes, but that wasn't enough. Bryant's three-pointer determined the final score. Maccabi suffers a 66:90 defeat to Anadolu Efes, who records their eighth consecutive Euroleague victory.

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