Yavneh defeated HSAA North-B 56-47 Monday night. The win improves the Bulldogs record to 23-8.
The “other” Sarachek-bound Texas Jewish basketball team shook off a 6 day layoff and major first half rust, scored exactly 56 points for the third straight game, and got even with HSAA’s North-B squad Monday. The first two minutes were an offensive disaster for both teams before Sophomore Itai Guttman made the best post move of his career for a 5-2 Bulldogs advantage. Two three balls found the net early for Yavneh but proved to be fools gold as they would misfire on their next 5 first half attempts from long distance. Guttman followed with a nice swoop to the hoop to give the home team a 12-8 edge after a single period. HSAA had size but it proved to be soft as the Bulldogs dominated the boards early 9-3. The lead, however, diminished, as the jacked jumpers found plenty of rim, plenty of air, and absolutely no hoop for the remainder of the first half. Adding to the heartburn was a bevvy of turnovers that surged HSAA into the lead at 18-17 for halftime. 10 turnovers were committed mainly by Yavneh’s primary scorers and a 5 point quarter had field goal percentage down to a paltry 29%. Mighty scorer Jordan Prescott had only 5 points in the first 16 minutes. Neither team shot well from the outside, combining for a horrific 2-17 three pointers.
If there is one commonality this year for Yavneh it would have to be the third period surges. It was essential to quicken the pace and the Bulldogs did just that. Full court defensive pressure and crashing the boards produced a 13-5 run to open the second half. As Yavneh rotated their deep pantry of guards easy scoring opportunities become more and more of a reality. The run was capped by Sophomore Adam Karnett scoring on the back end of a steal from classmate Sam Kleinman. While that was only the beginning of Karnett’s scoring fest on this night, HSAA did manage to respond with a 7-1 run of their own ending the third period. In fact, the HSAA tear became 12-1 and a 5 point lead minutes into the final quarter. Searching for answers with only 5 points still through 24 minutes, Yavneh’s all-time leader in assists went into the phone booth and shot out ready to lend a helping hand. Prescott immediately found Karnett on the opposite side of the baseline for a contact-filled finish. Off the subsequent missed free throw, Senior Kevin Sulski corralled a rebound which led to a four point possession. His find of Guttman underneath gave the Bulldogs the lead but Prescott was not nearly done with this surge. He assisted on the next three consecutive offensive trips, twice to a tenacious Karnett in transition and then once to Kleinman. In all, the 17-2 Yavneh explosion flipped the game and built a double-digit lead. The defensive pressure had eaten HSAA alive complemented by the Bulldog guards’ determination on the inside. Karnett led all scorers with 18 points and that was without six missed free throws and a clear missed goal tend that took two points off his line. Prescott tallied 15 points after a 10-point fourth period, had the four crucial assists that helped break the game open, and also recorded nine rebounds. Senior Kevin Sulski chipped in eight points and had none of the 15 team turnovers in playing all but 3 minutes. His attacking of the zone defense and offensive rebound work in the trenched was critical in the game’s turn-around. Also of note, five players gulped seven or more rebounds in a +18 differential that was key as well.
Yavneh (23-8) more than doubled their scoring output in the final 16 minutes. One more HSAA South meeting on Senior Night in 8 days is all that remains on the Bulldogs 32 game regular season docket in preparation for the Yeshiva University tournament in New York. The opponent will be super hungry having already lost to Yavneh twice this season.
The Kennel Report, now in its eighth season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
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