Yavneh defeated The Covenant School of Dallas 74-37 Thursday night. The win improves the Bulldogs record to 20-5 (7-0).
Author Jim George once postulated, “Its not how you start that’s important, but how well you finish!”. Apparently…he did not factor in the 2018-19 Yavneh Bulldogs to his deductions as they continued their unfathomable now 50-0 and 63-2 streaks to begin games. Thursday, it was 13 straight points right from the outset to sink a seventh straight district opponent in their return home to the SRC. Zach Bernstein BN continued his historic run to greatness by pilfering his two steals in the critical opening minute of this basketball game. Also twice, Ofek Reef displayed his innate passing skills to provide the assistance to Mason Schwaber for a pair of nice early finishes. Jonah Eber celebrated his birthday with a charming runner in the mid-lane area off a Bernstein helper to push the early advantage to 8-0. Moments later, the score danced its way to 11-0 on another Bernstein dime to Reef for an AND-ONE finish at the basket. Since returning from a contentious back injury early on in district play The Pelican has been nothing short of extraordinary, providing the secret sauce complement to Reef, Schwaber, Eber, and Winton in ways that Bulldog Nation had only dreamed up. Bernstein has been active on both ends of the court and unquestionably has been the key ingredient to push these starts from good to off the chart. Freshman Ben Rael surprised the world with his first career successful out-of-bounds assist to Reef for a 13-0 lead, a capper to a continuous 34-0 stretch dating back to the fourth period of Tuesday’s game at Lutheran. Reef has had some unusual tip-ins this season but none were more creative than the underneath, ducking tip in from the low angle that he deposited into the basket on this night. Tyler C Winton joined the birthday party with a clean steal and sprinting finish to push the lead to 17-4. He also set up Schwaber for a free throw line soft-touch jumper that began a late first period moment of Schwaber and more Schwaber. Two tip follows in a row for the Bulldog post mountain once again gave Covenant nightmares in the painted area. Rael’s steal was most definitely “For Rael” as he fed a pinpoint cross-court pass to Winton for a McBuckets finger-roll finish off glass that sent out sounds of the hopefulness of an upcoming Spring. Bernstein’s assist to Reef for a one-legged runner finished off a 27-7 outburst for the first period of play behind 76% shooting from the field. Noah Ohayon darted a pass to Tom Oster in the corner for a splashing trifecta that sent the capacity crowd into a frenzy. After that dramatic moment, they were only mildly entertained by Reef’s steal and dunk to extend the advantage to 32-9. Not since the Epstein brothers have we seen offensive rebound efficiency from a guard per time on the court but Oster is bringing back those memories. He might move with the athletic grace of his namesake TO but the knack to collect two more quick offensive rebounds has Oster approaching Epstein-like hustle in gaining these extra possessions for the Bulldogs. Showhayon notched another assist to Reef from out-of-bounds to continue a strong passing performance for the Freshman sensation that was amped up for this game with the Knights. Reef’s eyes lit up when Covenant did not chase down a ball rolling into the back-court which he scooped and scored for 36-9. The mid-range crew of Reece Parker and Nachi Zucker made an appearance late in the first half as well. Parker drained a baseline jumper to start a nice outing for the Junior, and Zucker proved the second time was the charm off his buddy Bernstein’s offensive rebound-assist. Bernstein also played pick and roll with Rael to finish at the basket, and the half came to a jubilant ending with Mo Zander-Feinstein’s punctilious assist to Elisha Klein for a dead eye triple. 45-12 was the halftime lead for Yavneh behind a 54% shooting edge, a 22-6 lead on the glass, and 11 forced turnovers. Reef’s 17 and Schwaber’s 10 points led the way as foul trouble beset 40% of the starting lineup in that opening 16 minutes of play.
Once again, there would be little to no high drama in regards to the scoreboard for the final half. The Bulldogs had taken care of business early and often, and Schwaber’s straight away three ball set up by Winton was probably the last thing the Knights needed to start the second half. One of the best plays of the night saw Eber and Bernstein partake in an all-out sprint to beat all Covenant players to their own fallen teammate for assistance in rising. This exemplifies the hustle, energy, passion, and honor that this team has been playing with for the last three weeks plus. Eber had plenty left after an extended first half vacation to set up Reef for a 51-14 lead. He also started his 17th year on the right note by finishing with his off hand off a return dish from Reef. Parker played his best all-around game of the season with a gorgeous floater and a crafty steal in the open floor. Reef’s best assist of the night was a dropoff pass to Schwaber for yet another easy finish at the rim. Covenant Senior Alec Scully came alive in the second half with four field goals and somehow turned the corner on the Yavneh defense multiple times in showcasing his efforts. However, the second and third waves of this Yavneh team were too locked in for this game to become anything but a strong sprint to the finish. Klein provided the Jaws of Life on his great pass to Eber for 61-25. Mr Fourth Quarter continued his stellar game with a killer-crossover turned mid-range dart and Eber seemed to get stronger as the night progressed. A twisting finish and the return of ThreEber were just some of the late highlights. His wing three point seeing-eye chuck off a great feed from Winton that almost seemed planned was going nowhere but the bottom of the net. Klein gulped another steal late in this game and torpedoed a laser to Feinstein, who navigated around the entire court including his family at a locked-in admissions table before somehow finishing under the rim. It was another strong start to finish effort for the Bulldogs, who were led by Ofek Reef’s exquisite 10/10 night that saw 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists highlight the show. Mason Schwaber caught the vibes with his own 7/10 shooting effort that netted 16 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 blocks. Jonah Eber also finished in double-figures with a stong second half that left him with 11 points on the night. Tyler Winton, Reece Parker, and Nachi Zucker all scored on multiple field goals to combine for another 14 points. Also of note, Elisha Klein exploded for a 6 rebound/4 assist outing off the bench.
Yavneh (20-5) has been playing great basketball but still finds itself with little to no separation in the District 2 standings. One of the hottest teams in all of Texas, Lakehill Prep, will welcome the Bulldogs for a Monday night tilt that will award First Place atop the standings to the winner. It is a great opportunity for the Red-and-Black to open a two-game lead on all pursuers with head-to-head tiebreakers over everyone should they escape this game with a win. If Lakehill cannot stem the tide early against a team that has now racked up a cool 50 points in a row to start games in the last 8 days, they could have trouble with this rising group that has talent, size, depth, and determination. Can they win another first place battle…on the road in a hostile environment?
ONLY TIME WILL TELL!!!!
The Kennel Report, now in its 15th season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
TL-BW-SP-BR
PTST3