Yavneh defeated Celina Public High School 59-40 Tuesday night. The win improves the Bulldogs record to 18-4.
Senior Captains Itai Guttman and Sam Kleinman notched a double-double apiece as Yavneh eased their way into 2014 Tuesday with a solid road victory. Not having played a game in nearly a month left serious doubts about the crispness of a team clicking on all cylinders in early-December. The Bulldogs, however, used their defense to prevent any lingering rust from threatening a victory in a hostile environment on enemy turf. The offense took a bit longer as the game stayed scoreless through the first trio of possessions on both sides. Itai Guttman’s put-back became the first points of the New Year and the visitors seemed to find a rhythm from there. After a pair of Adam Schor free throws, the guard duo of Sam Kleinman and Adam Karnett turned two familiar steals into easy points for an 8-0 beginning. The Yavneh guard pressure combined with a post anchor that was ready to play right away suffocated Celina and allowed very little room to operate. Guttman continued to provide easy offense at the rim, mostly on reverse layups, and suddenly the game had commenced with a laughable 16-0 score. Riley Nebeker finally scored off an offensive rebound to get the Bobcats on the board but everything was a struggle for the home team. Meanwhile, Kleinman was busy dishing assists as he found Junior Noah Weiss in the lane for 18-4. A seemingly key momentum shift occurred to end the first period as a Bulldog turnover with 3.2 seconds remaining resulted in a nearly-3/4 court trick shot to pull Celina within 18-7. Five more points to begin the second period made the score just 18-12 as Celina jumped right back into the game with their 12-2 scoring run. Senior Jason Epstein had the response with a critical left-wing triple that hung in the air for seconds before ending the spurt and any chance of a Yavneh implosion. Sophomore David Steinbrecher had a great stretch to help extend the lead back to comfortable double-digits thereafter. He connected on a mid-range jumper off a nice feed from classmate Jonathan Ochstein, and then recorded a steal and found Kleinman for the three ball that pushed the lead to a 12 point margin. A string of Bulldogs missed layups kept the game closer than it probably should have been but Itai Guttman finished a solid half with a buzzer-beating tip follow for a 34-21 halftime advantage.
A quiet Adam Schor began the second half with a finish off a great look from Kleinman and followed that with a blocked shot as well as a pair of rebounds. Methodically, Yavneh stretched the lead with a pair of post players that Celina had no answer for. The blocked shots and offensive rebounds continued to pile up and the lead was a solid 15-points when Karnett found Itai Guttman for yet another reverse layup. David Steinbrecher’s theft in the back-court ignited a circus drive by Karnett who finished with the body-slam for a three-point play that stretched the lead to 18 points for the first time. Kleinman assisted both Steinbrecher brothers in back-to-back trips as the lead ballooned to 48-26. There would be no late drama on this night as the Bulldogs had gone on the road and prevailed handily in their single tune-up for District play. A choppy final period made it very apparent that there is definitely work to be done for this team to return to its Nov/Dec form. Itai Guttman led all scorers with a solid 14 point/ 12 rebound game that included only four missed field goals. Sam Kleinman’s double/double was a 10 point/10 assist gem and Adam Karnett also added 10 points of his own.
Yavneh (18-4) is set to begin District play for the first time in 14 years Thursday when they visit Dallas Lutheran School. While new to this district, the Bulldogs actually have some familiarity with Lutheran. The series was entirely one-sided in Yavneh’s favor up until a disappointing split two years ago in which Lutheran grabbed a surprising road victory. In a district where three highly ranked teams will battle throughout January/February, the deciding factor may very well be who slips up against one of the other three teams. That peril combined with the opener being on the road presents a tremendous challenge as a new chapter begins on Thursday.
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