Israeli champions Maccabi Tel Aviv lost at home to Italian side Armani Milano 86-85 after overtime in the 11th round of Euroleague basketball on Thursday evening.

The Italian visitors achieved their fifth victory so far, out of eight games, while Maccabi remained with three wins in 11 games.

The game was played behind closed doors at the Menorah Mivtachim Arena in the coastal city of Tel Aviv.

After a close first quarter, ending at 20-18 for the home team, Maccabi opened a six-point lead, 31-25 at the 15th minute, thanks to points by Dragan Bender.

However, an impressive 15-0 run, led by Kyle Hines and Shavon Shields, gave the Italian side a 46-35 lead at halftime.

Points by Scottie Wilbekin cut the home deficit to 46-49 in the 24th minute, but Milano increased the lead by the end of the third quarter (59-53).

Maccabi returned to the game in the fourth quarter and took the lead with 1:02 minutes to go (68-66), with a 2-pointer by Wilbekin.

Othello Hunter made it 70-66, but a four-point play by Kevin Punter, with 18 seconds to the buzzer, sent the game to overtime.

A 3-pointer by Sergio Rodriguez made it 84-83 for the visitors with 31 seconds to go; Wilbekin scores twice from the line, but Malcolm Delaney made a dramatic 2-pointer winner shot with three seconds on the clock.

Punter scored a team-high 18 points. Delaney added 16 points, while Shields logged 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Wilbekin and Elijah Bryant led Maccabi scorers with 17 points each. Hunter finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.

Maccabi will play its next game at home against Serbia's Red Star Belgrade, while Milano will host Panathinaikos Athens - with both games to be played on December 3.

Source:
courtesy of XINHUA NEWS AGENCY

by XINHUA NEWS AGENCY

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