Eye on Champions League, Hapoel TA wins

Ahead of its first UEFA Champions League qualifier, Hapoel Tel Aviv earned a tidy ego boost yesterday with a 3-1 win over Hungarian club Ujpest in a friendly game played in Austria. Dedi Ben Dayan struck first for the Reds, followed by a brace by Itay Shechter. The Israeli champion faces Bosnian title-holder Zeljeznicar Sarajevo later this month in its first Champions League qualifier. "This was a simulation of what we can expect from the Bosnians," said Hapoel coach Eli Guttman. (Haaretz Sports Staff )

Gilboa/Galil is seeded in the third group of this month's Euroleague draw, the basketball league announced yesterday, and will play its first-round qualifiers against one of the following teams: Serbia's KK Hemofarm, the Czech Republic's CEZ Nymburk, Ukraine's Budivelnyk Kyiv and France's Le Mans. Maccabi Tel Aviv - upset in May's Israeli final by the Cinderella squad from the north - is seeded second in the draw, after the Euroleague changed its bylaws to allow ranking according to performance over the last three seasons and not just the last. Seeded first in the draw are CSKA Moscow, Barcelona, Olympiacos and Spain's Caja Laboral. Second, along with Maccabi, are Siena, Panathinaikos and Real Madrid. (Arie Livnat )

Beitar Jerusalem is in intensive talks with Maccabi Haifa over the fate of forward Toto Tamuz. In the wake of Haifa's sale of its own high-priced striker Shlomi Arbeitman to Belgian side Gent, coach Elisha Levy is reportedly still deliberating over whether to acquire Tamuz. Officials in the capital believe the Nigerian-Israeli striker will not likely play at Beitar this season, even if Haifa does not ultimately purchase him. (Moshe Boker )

The Knesset yesterday honored 30 distinguished sports figures from the past and present. Among those singled out by Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin for special mention were Maccabi Haifa soccer owner Yaakov Shahar, basketball player Boaz Yanai, Beitar Jerusalem soccer legend and current coach Uri Malmilian and its former chair Moshe Dadash. (Moshe Boker )

Ironi Ashkelon has signed recent Cornell University graduate Jon Jaques to a one-year contract. The 6'7", 220-pound Jewish-American forward averaged 6.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.8 assists last season at Cornell as the Big Red made its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 only to fall to second-seed Kentucky. Last month, Jaques' Cornell teammate Jeff Foote signed a three-year deal with Maccabi Tel Aviv. (Arie Livnat )