JERUSALEM, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Israeli basketball champions Maccabi Tel Aviv advanced to the State Cup final after routing Ironi Kiryat Ata 102-67 at the Menora Mivtachim Arena in southern Tel Aviv on Friday.

Maccabi will meet the reigning Cup holder Hapoel Jerusalem in the final on May 16. Jerusalem defeated Hapoel Beer Sheva 74-69 the night before in the same venue.

Three days after losing to Panathinaikos in the decisive fifth game in the EuroLeague playoffs, Maccabi was surprisingly down 18-27 in the first quarter against Kiryat Ata.

The rest of the game, however, was dominated by Maccabi, who took a 48-38 lead at halftime, and 78-48 after three quarters before securing a spot in the final.

Roman Sorkin topped Maccabi scorers with 17 points, followed by Bonzie Colson who finished with 14 points. Amin Stevens contributed 27 points and 11 rebounds for Kiryat Ata.

In the first semifinal, Jerusalem was leading 65-52 at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but a 16-2 run put Beer Sheva on top 68-67 with 1:06 to play.

Crucial points from Levi Randolph and Yovel Zoosman gave Jerusalem a spot in the final.

Khadeen Carrington scored a team-high 16 points for Jerusalem, while Randolph added 13. JaKeenan Gant and Grant Sherfield scored 16 points each for the losing team.

The two finalists also met in last year's final, in which Jerusalem won 67-61 to claim the State Cup title for the seventh time. Maccabi gained 45 Cup titles so far. Enditem

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