By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Hapoel Jerusalem escaped from Las Palmas with a 79-85 victory over Gran Canaria, the Israeli team’s second in the best-of-three series and with that they sealed a spot in the competition’s semifinals!
Curtis Jerrells was a true leader for the visiting team. With 38:47 minutes on the court, he scored 23 points. Jerome Dyson followed with 15, Amar’e Stoudemire added 13.
After a storming first quarter, in which Hapoel established double-digit leads, which was only expanded in the second. Still, the hosts trimmed the deficit to 9 points at halftime, 41-50.
Simone Pianigiani’s team was in control of the game in the third period too, though the hosts chopped up the margin in the final minutes of the game and almost caused a heart-attack to the visitors. Two pair of free throws by Sasu Salin (17 points) and Albert Oliver (16 points) made it a 2-point game with 23 seconds remaining, yet the game’s fate was sealed by Stoudemire and Dyson.