Arlington’s Oakridge School defeated Yavneh 67-51 Thursday evening. The loss drops the Bulldogs record to 14-12. Box Score is enclosed.
The good news is Yavneh got to the free throw line Thursday night. The bad news is Yavneh got to the free throw line Thursday night. 13 missed free throws, 16 bad turnovers, and an absolute mauling in the rebounding department added up to an ugly 16 point loss. Oakridge’s much-hyped talent Chris Babb led all scorers with an efficient 21 points on 8/13 shooting and also pulled down 13 of their 30 rebounds. What was most impressive about Babb was his ability to let the game come to him, forcing very little while keeping his teammates active in the game. Babb was not a one-man show, however, and the “other” guys all contributed. Oakridge grabbed the lead to start the game 5-0 as Yavneh began the game with one of a couple long dry-spells. With no points for nearly the first 4 minutes, the Bulldogs sprang back into the game with 3 late first quarter three pointers. Trailing 11-9 after a quarter, Yavneh had made just 3 field goals. Junior Michael San Soucie tied the game at 11-11 with two free throws seconds into the second quarter. After a Babb interior move gave Oakridge the lead again, Junior scorer Erez Krengel tied the score again with a gorgeous drive around nearly the entire Oakridge team. The 13-13 game got Yavneh right back into the game but the next three minutes saw Oakridge make their defining run. They outscored the Bulldogs 11-0 over that stretch, using turnover and second/third chance points to demoralize a cold Yavneh team. The lead grew to 13 in the late stage of a 34-23 Oakridge-led first half. Krengel kept pace on the scoreboard with 10 first half points to Babb’s 13. Oakridge used 17 total and 9 offensive rebounds to out-muscle a Yavneh team that could collect only 9 total first half rebounds. If one period of time has defined Yavneh’s success or failure this season, it has been the opening minutes of the third quarter in each game. More times than not, the games have been decided during that 4-5 minute interval. Oakridge used that period Thursday to spark a mini 6-0 run over the first 6 minutes of the second half. Missed shots, many of them free throws, left the Bulldogs with no points for 75% of the third quarter and now in a 40-23 hole. With the score 50-30 after three quarters, the Bulldogs had a tall task ahead of them if they were to make a game of it. They were able to start the final period 4-0 in just over two minutes but Oakridge had an answer for every Yavneh run. The Bulldogs were forcing turnovers but not converted them into points at the other end. The lead got no smaller than 16 points down the stretch in the final period. The 13 missed free throws and the 16 Oakridge offensive rebounds hurt Yavneh’s attack every time they tried to make a run. Krengel finished with 19 points while fellow Junior Bradley Alhadef added 14 in defeat. Krengel, San Soucie, and charge-taking veteran Sam Pulitzer combined to take a season-high 5 charges.
With 2 games remaining this season, Yavneh (14-12) can assure itself a winning record by beating Covington Public High School Tuesday night. Yavneh defeated Covington at home by 14 points earlier in the season but this one will be in their neighborhood. Also of note, Covington controlled the final period of the first game 18-5 despite losing by double digits. The Bulldogs will have to play well to avoid their first four-game losing streak of the season.
The Kennel Report is written by Zack Pollack