Strong second half gave Rilski the win over Hapoel and a 1-0 lead in the series

Rilski Sportist defeated Hapoel Tel Aviv 83:78 in the first game between the two sides, as this win gave Riletso a 1-0 lead in the quarterfinal series, as the next game is in Tel Aviv next week. The spectators in Arena Samokov enjoyed some really good basketball, as Rilski got the win after a strong second half performance.

Both sides seemed really motivated from the very beginning of the game, but in the first minutes of tonight’s contest it was Rilski Sportist who managed to get a slight edge over their opponents. Hristo Zahariev and Branko Mirkovic scored two quick baskets for 4:0 with just one minute played. In the next minutes Hapoel showed what they’re capable of, scoring eight points against three for Rilski, and had an 7:8 lead with 5.08 remaining. Both teams had trouble scoring in the next moments, but after four point by Vukosavljevic Riletso once again broke ahead – 11:8 with 3.32 to go. Hapoel also responded with six unanswered points and led 11:14 with less than three minutes remaining. Rilski scored seven points, including a last-second three-pointer by Asen Velikov against only one point for Hapoel and led 18:16 after 10 minutes of play.

Hapoel started off good in the second quarter, scoring 9 points against 4 for Rilski in the opening three minutes, leading 22:25. However there were some bad news for Erez Edelshtein, as two of his key players – Demontez Stitt and Curtis Kelly had 2 personal fouls each. Despite Kelly being on the bench, Hapoel still played really good and allowed only 4 points in their own basket, along with scoring 9, as they led 26:34 with 3.28 to go, after playing some really good defense. Branko Mirkovic scored a three-pointer, decreasing the difference to 5 points – 29:34, but halfway through the game Hapoel remained ahead, as this was the score at halftime.

Right after halftime Rilski managed to cut the deficit down to 1 point – 35:36, and it was time for the Branko Mirkovic show, as the Serbian playmaker shot 3/3 from long range, scoring 9 of the team’s 13 points in the first four minutes of the game – 42:38 with 5.59 to go.Rilski’s game was clicking on all cylinders, and they remained ahead despite Hapoel’s effort – the home team led 49:44 with 3.45 to go, as Hapoel was in a bad situation, due to Curtis Kelly’s three fouls already. The home side continued with their offensive clinic in the third period, scoring 10 points in the next three minutes, leading 59:51 with around a minute to go. Yonathan Skjoldebrand scored two free-throws, before Branko Mirkovic added another three for 62:53 after 30 minutes, which meant that Rilski have won this quarter by 14 points – 33:19.

Filip Vukoasvljevic extended Rilski’s lead to 11 points – 64:53 right after the start of the fourth quarter, but Bar Timor and Yonathan Skjoldebrand combined for 5 points, erasing the deficit down to 64:58 which forced Rosen Barchovski to take a time-out with 7.28 to go. Hapoel continued their fight to make a comeback in the game, as they managed to cut the deficit down to four points – 67:63, and continued to push, getting even closer to Riletso, after Cory Carr converted an and-one play for 70:68 with four mintues left in the game. Branko Mirkovic and Cory Carr traded baskets for 72:70, before Mirkovic added another 2 points to his statline for 74:70, and Hristo Zahariev made two free-throws – 76:70 with 1.59 remaining. Cory Carr and Demontez Stitt kept hope alive for Hapoel, reducing the deficit to 2 – 76:74, but Filip Vujkosavljevic made it 78:74 with 54 seconds left.

Demontez Stitt made two free-throws (78:76), but Hristo Zahariev dunked for 80:76 with 32 seconds left. Branko Mirkovic got his team closer to the win, making a free-throw for 81:76 with 17 seconds to go. The final score was settled at 83:78, and Rilski got the win and a 1-0 lead in the quarterfinal series.

Branko Mirkovic once again was the main reason for Rilski’s success. The playmaker scored 27 points, shooting 6/11 from three-point land and adding 7 assists and 3 rebounds to his stats. Filip Vukosavljevic added 23 points and 8 rebounds, while Hristo Zahariev had 11 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Ante Bilobrk also played good – 8 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.

The experienced guard-forward Cory Carr had a double-double for Hapoel – 20 points and 10 rebounds. Demontez Stitt added 16 points, Yonathan Skjoldebrand had 15, while Matan Naor added 11 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists. The team’s best player in the regular season – Curtis Kelly didn’t have the best per formance, as he played only 13 minutes, due to getting into foul trouble early in the game – he scored just 5 points.

The second game between Hapoel Tel Aviv and Rilski Sportist is scheduled for March 27th in Hadar Yosef in Tel Aviv.