Yavneh defeated Fairhill 79-34 Thursday night. The win improves the Bulldogs record to 13-4.
Yavneh blasted their way to another blowout win Thursday, the 12th in the last 14 games and finished 2012 with a bang. The wire to wire victory got off to a quick start as Adam Karnett pressured his way to an 8-2 beginning. Back-court mate Sam Kleinman found Itai Guttman for a pair of inside finishes in the first five minutes to stake the Bulldogs to the lead. Kleinman then found Junior Adam Steinbrecher in the corner for a three ball and a 15-6 advantage. The first double-digit lead of the night came courtesy of a big man fast break. Adam Schor found fellow post Itai Guttman for a big-foot rumble down the center of the court and the lead would never again creep back into single digits. The lead did not take long to reach 20 points still in the opening stanza as Jason Epstein willed a wing triple into the basket and followed with a crafty steal. A dominating first eight minutes was capped by a Steinbrecher to Steinbrecher special with Adam finishing for 30-8. In all, Yavneh shot a pristine 70% from the field and held Fairhill to just 25%. The second period saw the Bulldogs cool off from the field mostly due to shot selection. Going on vacation to NBJ Land (Nothing But Jump-Shots), Yavneh allowed Fairhill to cut the lead down to 15 points. Finally, though, Senior Josh Lynn made a great drive to the basket to stem the tide with a refreshing layup. Moments later Lynn found Itai Guttman in the lane and the lead again swelled to 36-12. Playing his best half of the season, Adam Steinbrecher drilled another three pointer to move the advantage north of 30 points just before halftime. The first half ended in dramatic fashion as Sophomore Grant Prengler torpedoed in a half-court moon shot off the glass and under the lights as the buzzer sounded. The Bulldogs had gotten 12 points from I Guttman and 10 more from A Steinbrecher to lead 46-13 at halftime. Fairhill, among other issues, missed nine free throws in the first 16 minutes to create the large deficit.
Yavneh had nearly all of the second half for showtime. Meir Epstein tossed one of his career-high 6 assists to Josh Lynn for a 40-point edge at 59-19 off a play with truly great ball movement. Kleinman also had a high assist game with 7 helpers including two in a row to Schor at one point in the fourth quarter. As time ticked away there was very little game drama but plenty of entertainment. A Fairhill player managed to commit 6 fouls in a high school basketball game, aided by an untimely 5th foul and bonus technical foul all at once. Jason Epstein also brought the crowd to its feet with a SUMO deflection late in the final period. The force of that hand/ball collision was so great that moments later Epstein was able to debut a trick pass never before seen in organized basketball. All in all, this was a statement ending to a semester of solid victories for the Bulldogs. Itai Guttman led all scorers with 14 points and 8 rebounds on almost perfect 7/9 shooting. Adam Steinbrecher followed with 13 points of his own and Adam Schor added 10. Every active player played and scored at some point throughout the game.
Yavneh (13-4) finishes calendar year 2012 with a nice 11-2 run since returning from Memphis. The pace at which they are playing is wearing down opponents and looks to be a key factor as the schedule gets tougher in January. As this compilation of almost exclusively Sophomores and Juniors continues to mature and grow as a team, the potential of this group becomes more and more apparent. Will the 2-headed Post monster of Guttman and Schor become too much for 2013 opponents to deal with? Will the cavernous depth of Bulldog guards continue to take the pace and speed of play to new heights? Will the turnovers finally subside and will Yavneh opponents be forced to deal with the reality of not being situated with offensive rebound after offensive rebound? Can this team win the close games that are sure to be on the horizon in January and February?
ONLY TIME WILL TELL!!
The Kennel Report, now in its ninth season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
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