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BELGRADE, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- Israeli basketball champion Maccabi Tel Aviv was beaten by Red Star in Belgrade, Serbia by 83-58 in the 12th round of the Euroleague.
Red Star gained a strong lead over Maccabi at the beginning of the match thanks to efficient team play in defense and counterattacks and entered second half time with 18 point lead (42-24) that continued throughout the match.
Host team had even five players with double digit score - Marko Simonovic (14 points), Ognjen Kuzmic (12 points, 5 rebounds), Milko Bjelica (11 points, 6 rebounds) Branko Lazic (10 points) and Stefan Jovic (10 points, 9 assists).
Both teams have 5 wins and 7 losses after this round of the competition. Red Star jumped by two positions in the rankings and is now 10th, while is ranked 10th while Maccabi dropped by three positions and is now 11th.
In the next round Red Star will play against Olympiacos Piraeus in Athens, Greece, while Maccabi will play on home court against CSKA Moscow.
Coach of Red Star Dejan Radonjic said after the match that everything worked as the team could only wish for and that they have "defeated a team that was in front by all parameters".
"We have managed to create good situations and easy counterattacks out of good defense plays. We have gained and built an advantage and in the end we came to a complete control of the game," he said.
Radonjic said that "Maccabi did much to return to glory days, they were champions of Europe" and in the latest transfer period created a team that can play on a highest level.
Rami Hadar, coach of Maccabi said his team played bad in all aspects of the game and that Red Star achieved a well-deserved victory.
