Hapoel Tel Aviv suffers home shock to Bayern Munich, loses EuroLeague lead

Alsharq Tribune-M.Essam 

Hapoel Tel Aviv relinquished first place in the EuroLeague standings after a 79-64 home defeat to Bayern Munich in round 25 on Thursday night.

The loss dropped Hapoel to a 16-8 record and third place, while Fenerbahce moved into the top spot following a 79-62 victory over Anadolu Efes in an all-Turkish clash to improve to 17-7.

Hapoel opened strongly in front of 7,100 fans at Menora Mivtachim Arena in southern Tel Aviv, taking a 26-23 lead at the end of the first quarter behind early scoring from Daniel Oturu and Vasilije Micic.

Johannes Voigtmann's 3-pointer gave Bayern the lead early in the second quarter, but Hapoel responded with a 9-0 run sparked by Tai Odiase and Antonio Blakeney.

Offensive struggles later in the period allowed Bayern to regain control, taking a 43-39 advantage into halftime following a series of baskets by Andreas Obst.

Hapoel's difficulties continued after the break, managing just two points in the opening seven minutes of the third quarter. Bayern capitalized, extending the margin to 55-41 behind Vladimir Lucic and Neno Dimitrijevic before closing the quarter ahead 61-50.

Justinian Jessup scored early in the fourth quarter to push Bayern's lead to 19 points, effectively sealing the outcome.

Isiaha Mike led Bayern with 16 points, while Obst added 13. Micic paced Hapoel with 13 points.

Olympiacos moved up to 16-8 and into second place after an 87-75 home win over Barcelona. Barcelona dropped from third to sixth, behind Valencia, which beat Maccabi Tel Aviv 94-83, and Real Madrid.

Also on Thursday, Olimpia Milano beat Partizan Belgrade 85-79.

On Friday, EuroLeague action continues with Monaco hosting Virtus Bologna, Red Star Belgrade facing Dubai, Baskonia taking on Zalgiris Kaunas, and Lyon-Villeurbanne meeting Panathinaikos. Enditem.