Maccabi Bnot Ashdod ready to enjoy return
ASHDOD (EuroCup Women 2017) - Israeli champions and Cup winners Maccabi Bnot Ashdod have every right to eye up top spot in Group A as they make a return to EuroCup Women for 2016-17.
ASHDOD (EuroCup Women 2017) - Israeli champions and Cup winners Maccabi Bnot Ashdod have every right to eye up top spot in Group A as they make a return to EuroCup Women for 2016-17.
Playing in the competition two years ago, Maccabi Ashdod made it all the way to the Semi-Finals where they were eventually pipped for a spot in the title game by eventual winners, Villeneuve d’Ascq.
After missing last year’s tournament, they are ready to tread the EuroCup Women boards once again and will feel they have a strong case for taking pole position in the first phase against a young Sparta&K M.R. Vidnoje side and a similarly young team in newcomers, Hoptrans Sirenos.
With the Group scheduled to be made up with another rookie in VBW Cekk Cegled or the more experienced Enisey Krasnoyarsk Region, there is nothing to fear for an Ashdod team with some key players.
Israel national team playmaker Naama Shafir has made the move to the club during the off-season and she is a huge pick-up, since she will bring a scoring presence to the backcourt – as evidenced by the 10 points per game she is averaging for her country in the FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017 Qualifier windows.
Look who made an appearance at today's practice. Thanks for stopping by @alleycat23! pic.twitter.com/kRKsuKi0gl
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Allison Hightower has recovered from knee surgery and she is back in the team, having previously featured in that run to the last four of the competition as the top scorer with more than 15 points per game.
Meanwhile, Tiffany Jackson, who is another returnee from that 2014-15 campaign when she led the way in rebounding. She is another competitor with WNBA minutes on her resume and has fought off breast cancer to make a return to the sport.
There is also a spot on the roster for Courtney Paris, who will give Maccabi Ashdod a mean looking frontcourt as she plays with Jackson in the paint. The forward is looking for a settled campaign after playing with three clubs in 2015-16 when she started with Spar Citylift Girona and ended up at Chevakata Vologda via a spell with Shandong in China.
FIBA