Yavneh defeated Dallas Cambridge 49-41 Tuesday night. The win improves the Bulldogs record to 9-2.
If there were five quarters instead of four quarters children everywhere would be chewing more gum, it would take an extra half-second to receive change for a dollar, and the Yavneh winning streak may very well have come to an end Tuesday night. In the second of a five-game-in-five nights scenario, the Bulldogs once again suffocated an opponent but then had to hang on for dear life due to a furious Cambridge rally down the stretch. Once again starter Adam Karnett set the tone by taking a charge on the game’s very first possession but found his team only ahead 2-0 after nearly three minutes of play. Careless early mistakes kept the game stagnant until Yavneh surged ahead with one of their patented first period runs. The 12-4 spurt on this night came courtesy of a Josh Lynn baseline jumper that ignited good energy including a Jason Epstein transition finish off the bench. Once again the Bulldogs had the fast pace and Cambridge played Burton’s part from a night ago of the confused basketball team that was still mentally on the bus outside. The last thing the visitors needed was a bank shot three pointer from Sophomore Ori Guttman that came after but before the buzzer in the minds of the only striped individuals authorized to make such a decision. As it was, the Bulldogs out shot Cambridge 66-30% in a 17-8 first period. Despite turning the ball over 6 times, Yavneh got 8 points from Itai Guttman who seemed guard-able only by himself within the paint. The devastating run would come in the second period this time around, anchored by some three point magic. Lynn connected on a corner triple followed by a Guttman to Guttman special, culminating with an Ori three pointer. He was then the recipient of the first of two electric assists (a tumbling one-eye open fade-away) from Sam Kleinman to completely break the game open. Kleinman then fired a seeing-eye helper to Junior Adam Steinbrecher at the basket for a commanding 33-10 advantage. Another quarter ended in dramatic fashion as Josh Lynn actually beat the buzzer this time with a three ball for a 36-10 Bulldog halftime lead. Guttman & Guttman led the scoring with 9 and 8 points respectively, contributing to a 19-2 second period that left Cambridge grasping for air. An already thin team was worn down and seemingly did not have the will to make a run. The score was truly indicative of Yavneh’s winning streak in that the game was fast and chaotic, yet the Bulldogs were in complete control. The teams combined for 25 turnovers in the first half and free throws seemed anything but…free. Yavneh’s 1/4 performance ran circles around the 0/9 that Cambridge recorded from the charity stripe, equalling the all time worst first half free throw % in the history of organized basketball.
Cambridge was well on their way to becoming the latest 50+ point victim to the Bulldog winning streak. For the first time since Memphis, however, Yavneh came out flat, stagnant, careless, unfocused, and disinterested for the second half. Cambridge was playing much better on both ends of the court but just a five point third quarter enabled the visitors to make up some ground. The pace had slowed to a crawl, and despite actually making a free throw, Cambridge was able to cut only 4 points off of the lead. The 9-5 period was a rare losing chapter for the Bulldogs in the last three weeks. Theo Harrison had a rough shooting night through 24 minutes but was determined to keep fighting. He led a 19-4 Cambridge run to begin the fourth quarter that had the Bulldogs searching for answers. Aided by some bone-headed plays at both ends of the court by his hosts, Harrison was involved in back-to-back three point plays to narrow the gap to a mere 7 points with 1:34 remaining. Cambridge collected most of their gaudy 18 offensive rebounds during that fourth period bonanza to stun Yavneh. As it was, all the Bulldogs needed was one play with such little time remaining and Sam Kleinman delivered on a rebound outlet to a streaking Adam Karnett for a 47-38 lead with 39.3 seconds to play. All the Cambridge momentum in the world would not be enough with essentially all zeroes on the clock but the valiant comeback effort put a scare into a hot Bulldog team. Itai Guttman and Adam Karnett led the Bulldogs with 12 points each and Adam Schor collected 10 rebounds. Also of note, Karnett tallied nine steals, almost every one of them for a two point transition basket. While there would be no fifth quarter to provide further danger to the winning streak, it will be important to bounce back early Wednesday night.
Yavneh (9-2) has now won 8 games in a row will have to deal with Thomas Jefferson Public High School Wednesday in a third straight weeknight game. TJ’s quick back-court could present an interesting scenario for a Bulldogs team that plays at their best on the run.
The Kennel Report, now in its ninth season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
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