Robert Gross Hebrew Academy of Miami defeated Yavneh 61-45 Thursday afternoon in the opening round of the Memphis Cooper Invitational Tournament. The loss drops begins the Bulldogs season at 0-1.
A young and inexperienced Yavneh team, lacking a go-to star player for the first time in nearly 14 years, looked…..young and inexperienced. The guard-dominated Bulldogs looked jittery and tentative in the opening moments. Hebrew Academy executed like a team that has played together and was comfortable with their identity from the very start. A 4-0 start calmed the Floridians nerves and the Bulldogs were grabbing binoculars in an effort to find someone who could step up. Within a group of players that either are staring down roles far greater than what they have had in the past or stepping into any role on a High school basketball team for the first time, the obvious choice stemmed the tide. Senior Josh Lynn, who has hit many a big shot in the past for this program, calmly drained his first triple of the season to put Yavneh into the game. If there is a veteran on this team that has been in big situations, it would have to be Lynn. From there the high pressure guard combo of Juniors Adam Karnett and Sam Kleinman took flight and raced the Bulldogs into an 8-7 lead. By the time Lynn drilled his second long distance jumper towards the end of the opening period the time had been stemmed. Karnett connected on a jumper, Kleinman swiped a shaky dribble for a layup, and the Bulldogs got themselves locked up in a 13-13 tie after eight minutes of play. Yavneh actually grabbed a 19-16 lead as Freshman David Steinbrecher floated a slow motion pass over and between defenders for his first career assist. Two subsequent connections from Kleinman to Junior Post Itai Guttman for key finishes gave the Bulldogs a seemingly rock-solid 21-16 lead with 5:06 remaining in the half. The pace was fast and Hebrew Academy was being taken out of their game. Suddenly, however, the game turned on a dime when Kleinman went to the bench with two fouls. HA responded with a devastating 13-0 run in which the Yavneh defense completely broke down. Backdoor cut after backdoor cut turned into a glorified layup line while at the other end the shot selection was atrocious during that stretch. The lead for Hebrew Academy was 28-21 at halftime but both teams felt like they could have been in a better spot. The two teams combined to shoot 5/17 from the free throw line alone in the first half of play. Karnett scored 8 points but the Bulldogs were out-shot 52% to 34% from the field.
A season ago it was the third period that was magical for Yavneh, especially in the comeback department. Lynn once again ignited the effort with another trifecta. An additional Kleinman three pointer off a nice pass from Itai Guttman followed by a coast-to-coast finish from Karnett pulled the Bulldogs to within a single basket. On this afternoon, however, the mountain could simply not be climbed. The turnover bug reared its ugly head and an 18-10 HA run essentially put away the young Bulldogs. Momentum seemed to have swung back towards the Bulldogs to end the third period as Karnett found David Steinbrecher for a buzzer-beating flip at the buzzer. Five points, however, was as slim as the margin would get the rest of the way. Following a Kleinman to Guttman three point play with 6:55 to play, the game was never closer than that 5 point margin and HA coasted to the finish.
Karnett and Lynn led the Bulldogs with 12 points apiece. Guttman and Kleinman followed with 9 points each. Also of note, first-year Junior Adam Schor blocked two shots in his debut. Ultimately, 6/21 from three point range, 13 turnovers, and a porous defense were a potion for disaster to open the season. Yavneh (0-1) will play Fasman Yeshiva of Skokie, IL in a Tier II quarterfinal Friday afternoon. The game will serve as a second look at the developing Bulldogs and a great opportunity to play for 9th place at the Cooper Invitational this weekend.
The Kennel Report, now in its ninth season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
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