Lucas Christian 77-47

Yavneh defeated Lucas Christian Academy 77-47 Tuesday night. The win boosts the Bulldogs record to 5-2.

Lucas Christian teamed up with Yavneh Tuesday for a night of caring, sharing, and giving the ball away a combined 61 times to one another. 40 of those went the way of the Bulldogs as they have forced over 100 turnovers in three games spanning just 72 hours. Jonah Eber fed Zach Bernstein right off the tip for a quick basket and Yavneh began pounding the ball into the paint once again early and often. Six free throw attempts in the opening two minutes netted a generous three points and an early edge for the home team. The first of a ridiculous 36 Bulldog steals was an acrobatic save on the sideline from Tyler C Winton to Eber to Ofek Reef for a 7-3 lead. Reef assisted twice after that, once to an attacking Winton and then to Mason Schwaber for a step through jumper. The three point famine seemed a thing on the past when Reef drilled a wing trifecta for a 16-5 advantage but alas there would be no more raindrops on this night. The activity, however, was great once again as Schwaber was finishing inside, Eber and Winton were flying all over the place with a TW3 engineered fancy pass to Eber for a 20-8 edge, and Reef was….simply fantastic once again. Bernstein had a career bandit night with 9 glorious steals including an early one to Winton for a floater off glass. The first period became a steal/assist exhibition capped off by a Winton seeing eye pass to Freshman Ben Rael for a no-look running hook to end the opening frame 30-15. For the second straight game the initial eight minutes were off the charts for the Bulldogs with 10 forced turnovers. Reef scored 11 easy points but Winton provided a breath of fresh air as he continued to prove to be anything but a spot up shooter so far this season. An excuse-me opposite hand steal and jump stop finish at the basket concluded an electric stretch for the athletic Junior wing as Yavneh was well on their way to greatness. Schwaber and Reef steals resulted in finishes under the rim by Eber and the first of three slam dunks of the night for thrOfek Reef. Junior Simcha Malina blocked a shot and wrestled the same basketball into his arms for a big rebound just before Reece Parker found Reef for a baseline two-hand flush for Dunk #2. Bernstein was another character that was on a moped blistering around the court taking basketballs, names, and finishing at the rim. The 40-26 halftime lead was a tale of Warrior turnovers of course but also a continued Yavneh inability to protect the defensive glass.

Despite all the turnover issues for Lucas, Yavneh had lost 9 points off its high-lead and the score was just 40-30 after a 4-0 spurt to begin the third period. The Freshman saved the day with a hooRael looping pass to Winton followed by a strong finish from Bernstein off a dish from Eber. Reef’s tip follow completed a 6-0 stretch that restored order and marked the beginning of the end for the Warriors. Both rivaling #11s attempted slam dunks with the Yavneh version going 3/3 and the Lucas not so much at 0/1. Reef also had the passing game working with two consecutive helping hands to Schwaber for a 52-34 advantage. The turnovers for a rattled, battered, and beaten Lucas Christian squad began to multiply with Reef, Eber, and Schwaber taking full advantage. Eber was an assist machine with nine helpers, many during the third period steal exhibition. Bernstein and Rael during one sequence were playing catch with the Warrior players, trading steals and assists like they were at a trading auction and flea market all rolled into one. It was bedlam and the end result was an early goodnight run with Lucas on the shortest of ends. An extended 20-4 run really sealed the fate of the visitors. One of Eber’s best assists came on a slick out-of-bounds pass to Malina for a stationary shotput finish at the basket. He followed that basket up with a takeoff finish known simply as the new jetliner phenomenon sweeping the nation…and the Citadel as SimchAir. One Reef dunk for good measure left the score at 60-34 through three periods of play. Tom Oster helped get Nachi Zucker in the record books for all time with an assist that led to the first career points for the Senior. Nik Krasovitsky took a Lucas forward on his back….literally to get on the scoreboard at, of all things, the free throw line. Parker set up Zucker for another basket from in close as the Bulldogs continued to pour it on. Elisha Klein was a roadrunner in the final minutes, following his own shot on one possession, and then tear-dropping a drive by layup finish over and around essentially the entire Lucas Christian community for 73-42. The exclamation point was a gorgeous Reece Parker shovel-pass, Baker Mayfield like, to Schwaber for the 74th and 75th points of the evening. Ofek Reef led all scorers with a nearly flawless 9/11 game for 23 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists and steals. Mason Schwaber followed with 15 points and 8 rebounds while Jonah Eber’s great 8 point/9 assist performance was huge in the win. Tyler Winton also shined in this game with 8 points and 5 steals. Zach Bernstein’s 6 points paled in comparison to his 9 majestic steals, by far and away a career high performance.

Yavneh (5-2) notched another 60+ points in the paint, put on a turnover tour de force, and blew out a fourth straight opponent. What might be most scary is that they are doing this with a continued disaster shooting the ball from distance and from the free throw line. With numbers never before seen in organized basketball, the Bulldogs will only be strengthened when these areas, as well as a return to not giving up over 20 offensive rebounds, start to improve. For now, the inside dominance is carrying this team to great heights and that is sure to be tested by Thomas Jefferson and Sunset DISD public school foes next week beginning Monday.

The Kennel Report, now in its 15th season, is written by…

Zack Pollack M&M

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