JERUSALEM (Israel) - By defeating Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem on the road 80-71 to improve to 2-0 in Group E, MHP RIESEN became the only team to win a road game this week in the Basketball Champions League.

Turning point: All 18 of Jerusalem's points in the first quarter came from inside the paint and five different players scored in the quarter. The second quarter got off to a slow start for both teams as the first point of the quarter came from RIESEN a few minutes in, while Jerusalem finally got their first basket with 4:10 left in the quarter.

The 27 points scored by Jerusalem in the first half tonight were their fewest in the first 20 minutes of a home game in BCL history.

RIESEN opened up a wide margin with a 30-18 third quarter to extend their lead to 64-45 heading to the fourth. Jerusalem played better in the final 10 minutes, winning the quarter 26-16, but it ultimately wasn't enough after trailing by as many as 22 points.

Game heroes: Balanced scoring was the name of the game for RIESEN, as three players led the way with 14 points including Yorman Polas (14 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 6-of-7 FG), Prentiss Hubb (14 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds, 4-of-7 3P) and Jhonathan Dunn (14 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists). Polas also finished with a team-high efficiency rating of 22.

Stats don't lie: RIESEN had a +9 advantage in total rebounds (47-38) as well as a +3 advantage on the offensive glass (14-11) which led to 21 second chance points. Jerusalem struggled mightily with their three-point shot, only connecting on 1-of-24 (the fewest made threes since 2019 and second lowest three-point percentage in BCL history), while RIESEN converted 8-of-25, outscoring them by 21 points from beyond the arc.

Considering Jerusalem only made one three-pointer, it's a feat in itself that they only lost by nine points.

Bottom line: RIESEN are now 2-0 and sit in the top spot in Group E. The German club will be on the road to face Darussafaka next on Wednesday November 2. They have now won their first two games in a BCL season for only the second time in their five campaigns after doing so in the 2021-22 season.

Jerusalem, meanwhile, are now 1-1 in the group and were led by Mareks Mejeris who finished with a game-high 19 points along with 6 rebounds. The Israeli club will also be on the road when they face Bakken Bears in their next game on Tuesday November 1.

They said:

"In the first half, neither team played really well. They [Jerusalem] were missing a lot of shots and we were fortunate that they had an off-night shooting first and foremost. I think some of that had to do with our defensive pressure. We knew Hapoel is a really good team and it'd be a very tough environment, so we're happy with the win, but I think the fourth quarter we really struggled especially on the defensive end giving up too many easy baskets." - Joshua King, head coach MHP RIESEN

"We came here ready, we played with a lot of energy. The goal was to come here play our game; defense, running. In the end, we made some mistakes, but because we played really good in the beginning, we got the win." - Yorman Polas, MHP RIESEN

"Congrats to our opponent. They came in and basically played the way that we were expecting them to play and the way we were preparing for them. I think it's pretty tough to play the same to keep the same level of focus on defense and intensity if we are missing open shots. We kept playing through the whole game, but what's bothering me is that we still don't recognize some moments on defense where we should react way better." - Aleksandar Dzikic, head coach Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem

"We gotta learn how to react to adversity better. We showed that we're talented, that we can fight, that we can play, but it was too little too late. We got amazing guys, talented guys and we need to lean on each other and react better. Shots weren't falling, 1-of-24 sucks, but on an off-night, you gotta show some grit a lot earlier than we did." - Zach Hankins, Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem