Maccabi Tel Aviv wins derby to secure Israeli league title

　　JERUSALEM, June 17 (Xinhua) -- Euroleague side Maccabi Tel Aviv won the Israeli Super League basketball championship for the second time in a row and the 57th overall, after beating Hapoel Tel Aviv 82-74 at home in the third and decisive derby game in the best-of-three playoff final series on Monday night.

　　A full house of 11,000 fans at the Menora Mivtachim Arena in south Tel Aviv saw Hapoel take a 24-21 at the end of the first quarter thanks to a strong team defense performance.

　　Maccabi responded with an 11-0 run, led by Roman Sorkin, at the beginning of the second quarter. However, Tomer Ginat and Tyler Ennis brought the Reds back to business, cutting their deficit to 38-39 at halftime.

　　Points by Xavier Munford and Ginat helped Hapoel take a 54-48 lead in the 27th minute, but Sorkin's contribution helped Maccabi lower the margin to 54-55 at the end of the third quarter.

　　Crucial points by Cuban power forward Jasiel Rivero in the last quarter awarded the win and the title for the Yellow-reds.

　　Sorkin topped Maccabi scorers with 19 points, alongside 9 rebounds. Rivero added 16 points and 8 rebounds. Ennis scored a team-high 17 points for Hapoel. ■