2008-09 Club Profile: Hapoel Jerusalem
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 One of the most successful teams in ULEB Cup history, Hapoel Jerusalem heads into the new Eurocup looking to continue its winning tradition. Hapoel etched its name into European basketball history in 2004 with a fantastic postseason run as it beat Prokom, Lietuvos Rytas and Reflex en route to the ULEB Cup title game.
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Hapoel Jerusalem Roster 2008-09
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| Name |
Pos.
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Height
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| Sharon Shason |
F
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2.06
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| Erez Marckovich |
C
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2.07
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| Adam Haluska |
G
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1.96
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| Ben Lazar |
G
|
1.94
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| Rahshon Clark |
F
|
1.98
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| Omar Sneed |
F
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2.03
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| Timothy Bowers |
G
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1.88
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| Jordan Fliegel |
F
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1.98
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| Moran Rot |
G
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1.82
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| Yuval Naimi |
G
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1.88
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| Travis Watson |
C
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2.03
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| Guy Goodes |
Head Coach
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Then Hapoel pulled off a historic victory by trumping Real Madrid in the final in Charleroi, Belgium, to win its first European trophy. The club was founded in 1943 and needed nearly half a century before it became a contender, but over the past decade Jerusalem has started to show what it is worth. With legendary captain Adi Gordon leading the way, Hapoel was crowned the Israeli Cup winner in 1996 and 1997. Hapoel has also reached the Israeli League final in two of the past three seasons. And won the cup again in back-to-back years. In Europe, Hapoel appeared in Korac Cup and Saporta Cup competitions throughout the 1990s, not to mention joining the new Euroleague in its debut season, 2000-01. Hapoel reached the Saporta Cup quarterfinals in 1996 and made the semifinals in 2002 before losing to eventual champ Montepaschi Siena. A small club with large ambitions, Doron Sheffer and Will Solomon inspired Hapoel to history in 2004. It reached the ULEB Cup semifinals in 2006, losing to eventual champs Dynamo Moscow. Jerusalem is coming off a rocky campaign, in which the club stormed back from a 22-point second-half deficit in the Israeli Cup final to stun Maccabi and claim that crown and also qualified for the ULEB Cup elimination rounds and beat Galatasaray in the first leg of the Last 32 before going out, however also failed to reach the Israeli League playoffs. Nevertheless, Hapoel continues to fight on hoping for more magic this season.
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Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Eurocupbasketball.com
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