Yavneh defeated Hyman Brand of Kansas 59-44 and then lost to Houston’s Emery Weiner 52-33 in the first two of four preliminary games at the The David A. Yaffee z’l Memorial Tournament in Houston Thursday. The Bulldogs season record now stands at 4-2.
Thursday saw Yavneh start with a bang and finish in shocking and utter disbelief as they split their first two Yaffee Tournament games. Long time Midwest rival Hyman Brand was the first test of the tournament for the Bulldogs. If either team had any jitters, Senior Captain Jordan Prescott allowed them no time for such none sense. Prescott recorded 8 points in the opening 73 seconds and in the blink of an eye Yavneh had arrived in Houston. Hyman Brand immediately responded with a 12-2 run to seize back control and all indications were that this one would be a war. Fellow Captain Jake Greif exercised any remaining demons at the Emery Weiner gym with an excellent opening period. Prescott found him with a great no-look pass and then Greif completed a strong three point play which means he added his first free throw of the year. It was a first half of firsts so to speak. Junior Josh “H” Lynn who had been missing the “H” for sure finally connected on a long distance bomb. The three point artist actually made his first three triples of the year in the game. With Sophomore Adam Karnett’s find of Itai Guttman rolling to the rim the Bulldogs had retaken the lead 17-12 after a single period. The game teetered at a 3-5 point Yavneh lead until the decisive final 90 seconds of the first half. Karnett converted two steals consecutively into passes to Prescott at the basket. Both resulted in three point play conversions and came less than 10 seconds apart. One more assist courtesy of the same combination bolstered the Yavneh lead to 33-21 at halftime. Prescott had exploded for 20 points on 9/14 shooting but the game was being won in the two areas that usually plague this Bulldog team. Hyman Brand combined for 0 and that is ZERO offensive rebounds in that first half. Additionally, Yavneh turned the ball over only 3 times. With another game to play just hours later, the Bulldogs could ill afford to continue letting opponents creep back into second halves of games. That would not be an issue on this morning as Yavneh got whatever they wanted right at the basket and in transition the entire way. The game never left a double digit margin again and allowed the much needed rest for most of the final half. Things were going so well that Post Itai Guttman was calling plays from the bench. Prescott led the way with 26 points while Karnett chipped in with 12 points, 9 assists, and 5 steals. Big men Guttman and Greif had 8/7 rebounds respectively and Lynn notched his 9 points on the three hits from downtown.
If the first contest against Hyman Brand was the “perfect game”, Emery Weiner was the mother of all train wrecks. The stage was set perfectly for a 2-0 Thursday but Jordan Prescott’s layup for a 2-0 lead was the final positive highlight of the day. After that, Prescott could never find the magic from earlier in the day and neither could anyone else. The Bulldogs tied the game at 9-9 early in the second period but Emery’s defense did a fantastic job of forcing the key Yavneh players to take ill-advised shots all afternoon long. The key areas of turnover limitation and defensive glass protection once again escaped the Bulldogs. A 22-16 Emery lead at the half seemed manageable but the second half was where the collapse was solidified. The lead grew to 10 then 15 then 20 and even 22 points. The shot selection got better but easy point-blank shots by the team’s very best scorers just would not fall. 14/46 from the field, 2/16 from three point range, and 15 turnovers provided no opportunity for a run. Further, Emery made almost every remotely open look. It was just a game the team needs to put behind themselves as there is serious work to be done on Friday. The reserves finished the final 4+ minutes highlighted by an Ori Guttman three pointer and a Jason Epstein offensive rebound turned foul line lefty scoop shot straight out of a backyard game of “Horse”. Unfortunately, Yavneh (4-2), had received their “E” in this game long before Epstein’s play.
This is no time for the Bulldogs to dwell on the events of Thursday. Nationally ranked #3 Shalhevet will be awaiting first up in the morning and that will be followed by the final preliminary round game against host school Beren in their gym. A potential revenge game will now be at the very least a must win as well. In order to qualify for the championship rounds a top 3 preliminary finish is necessary. This means the Bulldogs will have to win 2 games to clinch a berth in the championship game or win 1 and get some tiebreaker help. An early season test will be a tell-tale sign of what is in store for Yavneh this season. Friday will bring answers to many questions. As always, ONLY TIME WILL TELL!!!
The Kennel Report, now in its eighth season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
TL