Yavneh defeated Irving The Highlands 57-52 Thursday night. The win completes the Bulldogs regular season at 22-10 (13-3).
Yavneh earned 2nd place in District 3 with a tooth and nail victory that was in serious jeopardy for the better part of three quarters and really was never totally safe until the final buzzer sounded. Junior Steve Levine’s return was a welcome sight with a full court finish to get things started. He then found Daniel Chernikov for a finish as the Bulldogs had some good energy early. Under the weather Senior Noah Weiss was not able to play much but did find Sophomore Noah Rubinstein for a knifing layup and picked up a steal early in the game to establish a 2 point lead. Highlands first lead at 9-7 was quickly erased by a player making a habit of stopping opponent runs. Junior David Steinbrecher’s driving finger roll tied the score at 9-9 less than 10 seconds after his team had fallen behind and Senior Ori Guttman found Chernikov for the lead once again moments later. Levine was back to his usual tricks, swiping three steals in the opening period, creating finishes at the rim by Steinbrecher and then Guttman. Yavneh led by 4 points at 13-9 but their 15-12 advantage was erased on what seems like the 100th buzzer beater against this week alone to end a quarter. Guttman had a nice second-chance bucket to begin the second period but a 7-0 Highlands run, keyed by hot shooting from the outside and strong inside play by Senior Jake Telepak, created tension on the Bulldog side. Down 7points, Yavneh responded with drives to the basket by Levine and then Senior Zak Schultz off a steal to trim the deficit to just 3 points. Another 5-0 Highlands spurt, however, left the lead at 8 points courtesy of wide open outside opportunities and an out of control Bulldog attack. Steinbrecher once again stopped the bleeding with a timely triple set up by Grant Prengler but still Highlands led 29-24 at halftime. The visitors were efficient, connecting on 5 three pointers and shooting 50% from the floor. The Bulldogs were out of sync and, despite forcing 11 turnovers, could not generate much actual offense or grab rebounds on a consistent basis. Highlands took full advantage of 7 second chances in putting Yavneh on the brink of a disastrous loss.
The last week of must-wins had been epic struggles for moments in games but the third quarter was always a big catalyst to the cause. This contest was more uncertain due to the gravity of the situation but also the fact that Weiss simply could not provide any quality minutes. It would take a team effort to solve a pesky group of Seniors that did not want their last game to be a formality. While Highlands maintained their level, Yavneh finally was able to match them from an execution standpoint in the third stanza. Rubinstein fed Steinbrecher for a three pointer to instantly cut the lead to 29-27 and then Guttman gave Chernikov a high assist that visited the backboard before falling through the net. Chernikov would finish once more to tie the game at 31-31 as the game once again tightened. It was at that point that the game frenetically scrambled to a pace Highlands could not handle. At first, the Bulldogs were turning their opponents over but playing too out of control to make any headway on the scoreboard. Guttman and Levine were more than comfortable playing the steal, turnover, steal game with the methodical bunch from Irving. Levine finished once and Guttman’s free throw gave Yavneh the lead once again at 34-33. Just when it looked like the home team would seize control and coast into a home playoff game, Telepak snatched the momentum with another inside move. He was a sensational 7/10 and truly shined in his final game as if he was a poor mans’ Noah Weiss. If there was a moment that it seemed destined for the Bulldogs to give up sole possession of 2nd place in the final game, it was on the next possession. Sam Stevenson banked in a corner three ball somehow to increase the lead to 38-34 with time melting away in the third quarter. Junior Jonathan Ochstein came through with maybe the biggest basket of the game, tip-following an errant shot to trim the led to 2 points. Rubinstein made a great pass to Chernikov rolling to the basket a trip later for the tie at 38’s apiece, and then another helper to Steinbrecher for the go-ahead triple moments before the end of the third period. Rubinstein continued to impact the game at the onset of the final period with a top-of-the-key rainbow jumper that Kevin McHale would have been proud of. More importantly, Yavneh was playing with energy and Highlands had no answer for the pressure defense nor the offense that was being generated from it. Another three pointer trimmed the lead to 43-41 but a Levine lefty slash to the basket pushed that edge to 4 points with 5:31 remaining. That basket keyed the decisive run that will forever be remembered as the 32 seconds that clinched 2nd place for the Red and Black. After the Levine finish, Guttman instantly notched a steal that led to his finger-roll finish. Steinbrecher then gobbled up the inbounds and found Levine for a three pointer that made it 7 quick points in 32 seconds for a 50-41 lead with 4:59 to play in the game. Levine had 6 steals in all, and even when he could not finish the play out of straight fatigue, his buddy Ochstein was there to clean up. The second enormous follow for Ochstein and then a Steinbrecher find of Rubinstein for a rain-making left handed glass finish bookended Ori Guttman’s statement rejection. The lead was 54-43 with 1:54 to play at that point, seemingly enough to print the t-shirts. Highlands gave First Baptist some final hope with a 6-0 run over the next minute plus to leave the score 54-49 29.9 seconds from the finish. Prengler, though, connected on the front end of a pressure packed 1-and-1 to provide a two possession lead. Chernikov, who really alleviated the virtual absence of Weiss, dust-busted a mammoth rebound at the other end and put the game away for good with a pair of free throws. David Steinbrecher continued a breakthrough week to lead the team with 13 points on a trio of trifectas. Daniel Chernikov added 12 points, many of which came at a critical juncture in the third quarter with the game on the line. Steve Levine was baaack with 11 points, 6 ginormous steals, and 4 assists. Ori Guttman and Noah Rubinstein provided game changing play after game changing play at completely different speeds, combining for 13 points, 7 assists, 5 steals, and 6 rebounds. Jonathan Ochstein had only a pair of offensive rebounds and resulting field goals but those follows were critical, as was the free throw that filled up Grant Prengler’s stat line on this night.
Yavneh (22-10) will now prepare to host a first round TAPPS 3A playoff game against the 4th place team out of Austin’s District 4. That game will most likely occur next Saturday night February 21st if not the previous Thursday. The exact opponent is not yet known and could take several tie-breakers with 3 teams currently in a virtual tie for 2nd place. Will the Bulldogs continue their streak of undefeated home playoff games in their history? Can this team get back to the State Quarterfinals for another potential meeting with Lubbock Christian? Will the growing depth of contributors finally all play to their maximum on the same night….a playoff night?
ONLY TIME WILL TELL!!!
The Kennel Report, now in its eleventh season, has been written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
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