Hapoel Tel Aviv heads to Euroleague quarterfinals

Hapoel Tel Aviv has clinched a spot in the prestigious Euroleague quarterfinals, a significant achievement that sees them set to face powerhouse Real Madrid. Despite concluding the regular season with a decisive 105-85 loss to Monaco, the team's overall 23-15 record secured them sixth place, earning them a shot at European glory.

Head coach Dimitrios Itoudis admitted his team 'didn't show up' against Monaco, citing a flat performance from the outset. However, he stressed that reaching the playoffs is a major accomplishment for the club. The focus now shifts entirely to the best-of-five quarterfinal series against Real Madrid, with the initial games scheduled in Madrid before returning to Sofia, Bulgaria.

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Congratulations to Monaco. They played better than us and deserved to win. Unfortunately, from the very beginning – how we started the game and how it continued until the third quarter – that wasn’t us. We have to accept that we didn’t show up, not even close to our potential or our standards. We’ll move on to the playoffs, that’s an achievement. We didn’t want to end the regular season like this, but it happens in basketball, and now we’ll focus on what’s ahead.

Meanwhile, Maccabi Tel Aviv's Euroleague campaign has ended with an 89-85 defeat to Bologna, leaving them with an 18-20 record. Coach Oded Katash pointed to a string of injuries that hampered the team's energy and performance. While their European journey concludes, the team will now concentrate on the Israeli league, which saw Hapoel Jerusalem secure a victory over Bnei Herzliya.

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It was not easy for us recently. We lost a lot of players to injuries, and our energy went down after we lost the chance to make it to the Play-In.