Game One Win...But No Burn for T-Go...

Tonight I got my first taste of what the regular season is like in Israel.  We played at Ramat Gan, and they have a very small gym, but our fans known as the 'Green Apes' were there in full force.  Traveling about 100 deep, all wore green, and those who didn't... well they weren't wearing shirts, going nuts from 15 minutes before the game til the final horn sounded.  It really is great having fans like them because even in a road game tonight, we had our own 'home court advantage' in a way.  So first things first, I wanna give a shout out to them, and make sure the 'Green Apes' know how much we appreciate them!  Now to the game... after playing so well in the 'cup' game earlier this week, and then backing that up with two real good days of practice, I thought I was in line to get some solid playing time in this game.  I wasn't expecting anything like the twenty minutes I got the other night, but I thought the ten minute range was a reasonable expectation.  After not getting in the game during the first half, I knew it was less than likely I would make any meaningful appearance at all, because the game was still close until about seven minutes left in the game.  Ramat Gan started the game as expected, full of energy on their home court, and executing the side pick and roll really well.  We did a pretty decent job weathering the storm early, and we only trailed by four at the end of the first quarter.  We played real well in the second quarter, and their shots weren't falling nearly as often, and we took a five point lead into half.  During the third, we missed some good opportunities to extend the lead, but at the same time our defense was really picking up, and we were giving them NO SECOND CHANCES on the offensive glass.  In the fourth quarter Doron Perkins hit two threes back to back, and Gur Porat hit a big three to extend the lead to a comfortable margin, and I think we ended up winning by about fifteen.  Another thing that is different in this league from any league in the states is it matters how much you win by.  A five point win is not the same as a nine point win, therefore, coaches are much more reluctant to take the starters out even when the games are decided.  The point differential matters when it comes to tie-breakers at the end of the season (lame rule, but the way it is...).  As for my playing time, I really don't know why I didn't get even a sniff, especially after the week I had put together, but all it means is I have to get better, and play even better in the next week of practices.  Even though it was pretty disappointing not getting any clock, we did still get the win, and we are off to the best team start any one can ask for, a 1-0 record.