Yavneh defeated Lake Country Christian School of Fort Worth 80-66 Saturday night in a TAPPS 3A Regional quarter-FINAL playoff game. The win improves the Bulldogs record to 27-6 and sends the Bulldogs to the State Tournament for the third straight year .
YAVNEH IS GOING BACK TO STATE…again—It took 22 turns of the calendar for the Bulldogs to get there but now the TAPPS 3A Final Four is a second home to the Bulldogs, appearing thrice in as many years. Three Double-Doubles plus from the starting lineup, a career-high in points and rebounds for Mason Schwaber, and an epic Triple-Double that broke the school record in assists for Ofek Reef were only part of the mayhem that was this Regional Final. In a classic battle of outside versus inside, the Red-and-Black defied the new school equation that three is better than two, punishing the Eagles from point blank range all night while allowing a mere 30% on just 26 three point attempts (about 10 below their average) Both teams seemed to do exactly what they wanted for the majority of the game but for Lake Country there was so much more to chance. Their chaotic trapping press caused the Bulldogs issues at times but just as often allowed wide open layup opportunities, allowing Yavneh to shoot north of 50% for the game. Ofek Reef began the contest beating one such trap and finding Mason Schwaber all alone at the tin for the team’s first field goal. After yielding the first basket of the game, Yavneh reeled off 14 of the next 16 points to build a 14-4 lead. Jonah Eber scored on a floater off glass and assisted Reef for a nice reverse layup, while Schwaber commanded the mid-post area for 10-4. Tyler C Winton, who would later insert himself into the game plan, set up Eber for a slippery scoot to the hoop and then stealthily set up Reef for an own tip-follow. One more Winton pass dissected the pressure to Reef for a layup as the Bulldogs were easily beating the pressure early for gimme opportunities. On one possession, Eber patiently found Reef at the basket and then Reef assisted Schwaber who was just as open moments later. Lake Country attempted just four three pointers in that first period (made 1) and saw the Reef/Schwaber combo shoot 7/9 from the painted area in building a 20-14 advantage. Senior Caden Price was just getting started with his 12 first quarter points, who proved to be a threat from anywhere in the gym. Price almost single-handedly willed the Eagles back into the basketball game after trailing by double-digits, leading them on a 14-4 spurt. On three occasions Lake Country would trim the deficit to just a single basket, including 20-18 off 4 points in 10 seconds. It is extremely rare, specifically within TAPPS 3A, for a team to consistently turn over the Bulldogs in contrast to their ball security but Lake Country did just that. The Yavneh turnover count reached seven by the early moments of the second period en route to total numbers that looked suspiciously like any one of their opponents over the last number of years. Reef to Schwaber at the basket was the response formula to two consecutive possessions where emptiness would have given the Eagles a chance at a tie or the lead. This game felt like a chess match where the Bulldogs had to score just enough times off of the pressure to stay in front by the slimmest of margins, and it took discipline that this team had previously struggled with. While the game plan clearly was to exploit the size advantage with Schwaber and Reef along with the tenacity of Eber from right behind that front line, it became more and more apparent that to break this team it would be the setups by Winton and Zach Bernstein BN that would ultimately be important. Winton, who would not wait much longer to escape into the phone booth and change gear to McBuckets, had another masterful setup for Eber to follow in an errant shot. With the referees wanting to become the real stars of this game, both teams found themselves beset with serious foul issues. As such, Freshman Ben Rael entered the game and preserved a halftime lead in the Rael critical moments of this game. With Lake Country knocking on the door twice more to tie or take the lead, Rael tossed a hockey assist for the Reef touch pass that marvelously found Schwaber once again at the rim. Rael’s 1-and-1 free throw splashes on the next trip down the floor produced the 34-30 halftime margin, tenuous but still in front. The Bulldogs were controlling the game with their 24-10 rebounding advantage and 26 points from the inside tandem of Reef/Schwaber. While 14 turnovers shockingly explained why this game was close, the Eagles 3/10 three point shooting felt like there could be way more attempts coming and with those extra at-bats more potential production.
It was important for the Bulldogs to throw the first punch to begin the second half and Schwaber did just that. For what felt like the 100th time already, Reef darted a pass to Mount Mason for an easy and confident finish. Schwaber’s put-back moments later rebuilt a 38-30 edge but Price was fantastic in catapulting Lake Country right back as he did so many times. A three pointer and a floater clawed his team back to 38-35 as Yavneh once again felt the walls caving in. In a game that showed no signs of separation and was beginning to feel like this contest would be back to a one possession differential right to the end, it took something extra to provide the spark. That redundant broken record of Reef and Schwaber inside may have been the meal ticket but what happened at 38-35 finally seemed to break this one open. Zachary Bernstein, as only he could do, slid into position for a momentum charge take that seemed to electrify the fire-code violating capacity crowd. At the other end of the court, Winton bottomed the first three pointer for Yavneh, a corner triple that just felt like a dagger. Bernstein funneled a pass to Schwaber after a key defensive stop to push the lead out to 9 points at 44-35 as Bulldogs Nation could feel the seizing control of this game. Reef’s longest assist of a night that will go down in the record books for passing was a looping fly route to Winton for a wing TW3 trifecta. With 2:20 to play in the third period, McBuckets had most definitely arrived and with it the largest 49-38 lead of the game. The bizarre in this game really heated up on the ensuing sequence when a loose ball ended up in the hands of Reef on an apparent steal. Not hearing the whistle for a Lake Country violation, a technical foul was assessed for a driving slam dunk on a dead ball. In a brief moment of confusion in which they thought an opera or a tennis match was on the menu versus a gym full of boisterous noise from a sea of fans, this officiating crew used their best judgment. While this disappointed most Bulldogs fans initially, they were soon overjoyed to see an encore presentation of the 2014 Regional Final in which David Zimmerman threw just a jacket onto Colt Mc Coy’s high school court in Tuscola. This time, barely restrained by his entourage including familial confidant Tyler Winton, the Yavneh head coach nearly set up camp in Reef and Schwaber’s territory. As it was, the Bulldogs escaped that situation with the lead still in double-digits, Reef, Schwaber, Eber, and friends back in control of the painted area, and Yavneh inching closer to a Final Four trip to Waco. The foul trouble had mounted for Lake Country and the Red-and-Black were shooting bonus free throws already late in the third quarter. For a team that shoots just 52% from the charity stripe on the year, a magical sequence of 5/6 to end the third period just felt like this night would end well. Reef connected on three of the hits while Bernstein flew his two attempts into safe Pelican waters. The final stanza was a balancing act of foul trouble for the Bulldogs, who were holding the lead but had Reef, Schwaber, and Eber each one foul from elimination. Meanwhile, Price for Lake Country was making his final push and diced the lead as low as 6 points in the last quarter. Reef set up Winton for a little flip shot and then found Eber for a walking…no running finish to increase the advantage back to 8 points on both occasions. Winton drilled another trifecta from the corner, only this time he was shaking hands, kissing babies, and evangelically preaching to the crowd on the way back down the floor. The bank was open for Eber as Reef continued to churn out the helpers on his way to greatness, and with that shot a game-high 62-48 margin. Price’s last stand diced the lead to 65-58 with 2:51 to play but all three foul-troubled players still remained in the game and instead of salting the game away the Bulldogs pulled out the salt tanker. A 15-2 clinching explosion set off mass hysteria from the city of Grapevine all the way across the globe. This stretch was truly a coronation for this team that had survived a true test on this night. Reef had a steal for a touchdown and recorded two final assists, one to classmate Nachi Zucker on a nice twisting finish. The final lob to a thunderstruck Winton was indeed the all-time Yavneh high for assists in a single game. Not to be overshadowed were the defensive rebounds off textbook boxouts even Freshman specialist Noah Ohayon would be proud of. Eber and Bernstein controlled the defensive glass during that final run and enabled the hoopla that ensued with the finishing blows. Ofek Reef’s Triple-Double somehow upstaged his other all-world games from this season with 22 points (70% shooting), 16 rebounds, and the school record 14 assists. 8/10 free throws were just as important in a game that was on the brink for the majority of it. Mason Schwaber’s Double-Double included career highs of both 23 points and 14 rebounds when his team needed to have a career game from the Junior post. Jonah Eber also Double-Doubled with 10 points/10 rebounds and Tyler Winton exploded for 18 points with clutch shot after clutch shot in the second half of this contest. Zach Bernstein also grabbed 10 rebounds in a game where the 54-25 board advantage was the biggest catalyst in offsetting the 28 Bulldog turnovers. Caden Price scored 35 points and was sensational as well for Lake Country as he played in his final career game.
Yavneh (27-6) will now prepare for the State Semifinal on Thursday afternoon at 1pm Central time against Midland Classical. The game will be played at University High School in Waco, Texas. Classical has been just ahead of the Bulldogs in the meaningless guess rankings all year long, dominated their district, and boasts an almost identical 27-5 record. The teams appear to be very similar with a Senior sensation of their own in Cole Miller and several guards that pace the team. This should be a scintillating matchup in what many in the Media are already calling Battle on the Brazos. Can this team that is chameleon-like beat yet another high powered attack at whatever game they want to play? Will Ofek Reef continue to dazzle on the big stage? Will the Junior class of Eber/Winton/Schwaber continue to grow up on the fly with the stakes at their highest? Can Zach Bernstein continue to be the Bill Belichick of this vaunted Bulldog defense and frustrate another high-powered offense? Can the most passionate bench in TAPPS history bring this team to the Finals with their excellence both on and off the playing surface?
ONLY TIME WILL TELL!!!!
The Kennel Report, now in its 15th season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
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