Yeshiva Atlanta defeated Yavneh 53-43 Thursday morning in a preliminary round game of the 4th Annual David Yaffee Memorial Tournament in Houston. The loss drops the Bulldogs record to 10-9.
Being back in the national spotlight was not enough to rid Yavneh of their early game woes in dropping the first of two preliminary games that will position the team in a 3-game elimination tournament on Friday. It was dejavu for the Bulldogs as for the second straight game they stared a 17-point first half deficit square in the eyes as the ball would not find the basket early. This time it was an 0-5 and 2-11 shooting start. On the scoreboard at Beren Academy, there are no lights under a team’s name until a score is posted. At 9-0 Atlanta almost five minutes into the game, the Yavneh side of the scoreboard was still dim and there was serious concern that there may be no oil on the way. The first period ended 15-5 with Yavneh posting 18% shooting to go along with six turnovers. Y-Atl hit them early, as is their MO, with a series of three pointers and runout baskets. The Bulldogs showed signs in the second stanza as Freshman Jordan Prescott got them back in the fight. He had nine first half points but not much else was encouraging. At 27-10, Senior captain William Zalstein found Prescott for two consecutive three pointers late in the half to trim the halftime deficit to 30-18. The Bulldogs had allowed 7 big offensive rebounds, turned the ball over 10 times, and watched Ariel Sonsino drill four triples to account for the difference. Once again, Yavneh fought their way back in the final 16 minutes. Prescott continued to shine and finally got help from Sophomore Elan Kogutt in the third quarter. A combination of three pointers, mid-range jumpers, and even some elusive high percentage shots by the PK Combo paved the way to a 37-30 game towards the end of the third period. The 20-10 Yavneh run was initiated by pressure defense including a full court press that turned Atlanta over and rushed their offense. The pace was all Bulldogs as the fourth quarter developed but 4 straight missed free throws accounted for two empty possessions at 46-39 with 5:13 to play. Instead of a one-score game, Yavneh was down three scores and freebies were the primary nemesis. With two of Y-Atlanta’s top 3 players in serious foul trouble, the Bulldogs simply needed to connect on their free throws but missed 12 of 20 (including key ones down the stretch) A couple point-blank layups cost Yavneh as well while the game came to a stagnant scoring halt. There was simply not enough time for Yavneh to come back, playing far from perfect down the stretch. For the second consecutive game, the team simply ran out of gas because they fell behind early by too many points. An even first period would have allowed the Bulldogs to coast late without a doubt. Kogutt led the Bulldogs with 20 but was the biggest free throw culprit with 7 misses while Prescott chipped in 17 but fizzled late in the game when his team had to have a bucket. Atlanta’s Sonsino led all scorers with 21 points on 6/6 three point shooting.
Yavneh (10-9) is now in the precarious position of having to beat HANC this evening to avoid being the lowest seed in their half of the bracket. A 2-11 first period vs. HANC would simply be lights out down 25. Nevertheless, the Bulldogs will be fired up to get another crack at the group from Nassau County, whose best player (Seth Hochauser) is finally at full strength after suffering an early season hand injury. Both teams lost key players from last year’s #1 vs. #2 duel, and the game could go a long way towards shaping the format of this tournament’s finish.
The Kennel Report, now in its fifth season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M