Yavneh defeated Lakehill Preparatory School 74-28 Thursday on SENIOR NIGHT. The win closes out the Bulldogs regular season at 25-5 (12-0).
Ahead of a wild and wacky final weekend of TAPPS 3A District 2, Yavneh had very little to do with the jumble of three teams fighting for two final playoff spots as they cruised to a 12th straight district victory of at least 14 points. Their 15th win overall, the Bulldogs closed out the regular season by honoring their trio of amazing Seniors in the most natural of fashion. To simplify the equation and say Ofek Reef dominated the game in the scoring, rebounding, and everything else column; Zach Bernstein BN Sr hustled his way dangerously close to a Quad-Double by doing every little thing to add up to a Lakehill nightmare; and Nachi Zucker fired up a sea of midrange shots, played really solid defense, and had a block party on one possession would mostly be just another day at the office for this group. There was nothing out of character for them nor this basketball team that once again used a powerful beginning to bury a district opponent before they knew what hit them. It was somewhat apparent that Reef wanted to score on this night and did seem jittery at the start until the emotions of the night wore off a bit. He attacked early but missed on several early attempts. He did connect on a free throw and the game seemed to change for him on one play following a Bernstein to Mason Schwaber connection at the basket. That play, just one of four Reef steals, resulted in a long runway for the Senior to two-hand jam his way to a 5-0 lead. At that moment, the game seemed to open up for Reef and Friends. He followed that with a great pass to Jonah Eber for a slippery contorted finish. Schwaber added an interesting sequence in which he created two offensive rebounds for himself and scored on a 6+ second waltz through the lane. That began a 7-0 stretch for the Bulldogs that culminated in an Eber steal to Reef for Dunk #2 and a 14-3 edge. Lakehill hung tough early in the first meeting at their place but 5 early turnovers gave Yavneh too many early uncontested looks at the basket to stay close in this contest. Schwaber got one steal and shoveled the ball to Reef for a third rim rocker. Meanwhile, the two other Seniors were also making their presence known. Zucker, in one of the most legendary defensive sequences in Senior Night history worldwide, had a double Nachjection in less than an instant. The Swat team was working overtime with the two blocked shots for a Senior that was making his second straight start for the first time in his storied career. Bernstein may have played his most well-rounded game on arguably the biggest stage he has had with multiple scouts on hand to see all the Pelican hype. Once notoriously known for filling up the stat sheet strictly in the turnover column, Bernstein was sensational on this night in nearly every other category. His late first period run of three steals in a row was highlighted by a majestic rumble to the hoop in which the athletic Bernstein tried to dunk the basketball but in the end settled for a high-altitude finger roll finish. 21-8 was the lead after one period of play but the game did not have a particularly competitive feel. Reef’s 12 points, Bernstein’s 4 steals, and 11 Lakehill giveaways made this game almost a foregone conclusion. Continuing to impact the game, Bernstein stepped up his game in the second period by doing everything but cook the close to fire code violation crowd dinner. Maybe not the safest floating pass still found Reef’s paws as he plucked the ball out of the friendly skies and gave Bernstein another assist with a solid finish. The Pelican was in the groove, notching a steal so high in the air that the ceiling was in peril, assisting Noah Ohayon for a splash zone triple from the wing, and scoring on a two-handed floater AND-ONE for the ages. When all was said and done during one of the best sequences of Bernstein’s career, a 14-2 run had turned a decent lead into a 35-10 blowout. Former 7-star recruit Eli Buxt, who chose Lakehill over Yavneh in a tough decision four years ago, had his own great Senior moment with four points in 30 seconds to engineer a burst to end the half for the Warriors. He could have really cut into the Bulldog lead if not for the heroics of Mo Zander-Feinstein, who came out of nowhere to reject Buxt’s last-second on target half court heave before halftime. As it was, the Red-and-Black led 35-14 at the break behind 18 points from Reef, 6 points/8 rebounds/6 steals from Bernstein, and a healthy edge in all shooting, rebounding, and ball security.
Reef and Bernstein continued to be the story in the early parts of the second half. Ofek drained a wing trifecta, Bernstein swatted a shot into next Tuesday, and Reef attacked the paint some more with a finish and volleyball session for another basket. The active Juniors were also into this game as Eber’s 360 degree twirl assist found Schwaber for an easy look at the basket. Reef finally collected his first AND-ONE of Senior Night fueled by a nifty steal at half court for a 53-25 advantage. Bernstein continued to assist and assert, finding Schwaber again and then stealing a pass for a sprint to the hoop. That finish might have been the best of the night, spinning the ball around and in with some serious English…all while absorbing serious contact. Tom Oster continued to be a rebounding vacuum but made an immediate impact with a great steal and assist for yet another Reef bucket late in the third period. Reece Parker scampered to the hoop for two points and Ben Rael assisted Schwaber to stake Yavneh to a 64-25 lead through three periods of play. The Bulldogs must have been watching old Paul Westhead Loyola Marymount videos during their downtime because they engineered the old Zero-defense to begin the final stanza. In what many in the Media are calling the most genius play in school history and a peak into future creativity for this basketball program going forward, oft AWOL Junior Simcha Malina showed off his two-sport athleticism with a missile TD pass to Nachi Zucker for an easy two points. That connection that only the UN-informed would mistake as a cherry-pick finish was followed up by a Zucker explosion with a more traditional basket courtesy of Reef’s final assist of Senior Night. Oster funneled a pass to Elisha Klein for a Jaws rainbow three ball that bounced off the moon and in. Zucker would cap his excellent Senior WEEK with a backboard free throw and a final steal before exiting the game. Malina was happy to be back in action but was limited with a quintet of fouls in his six minutes. The all-world post, sure to be a factor in the Playoffs, did score off an assist from Feinstein late in this game. Also of note, Feinstein committed his first career charge before the final buzzer, bulldozing an innocent Lakehill bystander on his way to the basket. On Senior Night, Ofek Reef glistened again with 32 points and 12 rebounds for yet another Double-Double. Zach Bernstein had a ridiculous game with 9 points, 9 rebounds, 8 steals, and 6 assists. Overtime or a slightly more competitive game would have given him a shot at double-digits in all categories but a stellar performance none the less. Mason Schwaber also scored in double figures with 12 points and picked up two blocked shots. Also with a pair of rejections was Nachi Zucker who also had 5 points in the fourth quarter.
Yavneh (25-5) has impressively completed back-to-back perfect district campaigns for a total of 24 straight wins. The likelihood is, however, that they will not see another District 2 team until 2020. For now, it will be 11 days of preparations to begin the post-season run with a first-round HOME playoff game against Denton Calvary February 19th in all likelihood. This team has been here before and knows what lies ahead. Can they put it all together and win four elimination games in less than two weeks to win a State championship? Will this group prove in a big spot that they can beat the best that the state of Texas has to offer in 3A? Will the depth that seems so promising prove that instead of Ofek and The Chipmunks that this squad has become a multi-layered team that is in-defensible? What will the 2019 playoff run do to cement this great team’s legacy?
ONLY TIME WILL TELL!!!!
The Kennel Report, now in its 15th season, is written by…
Zack Pollack M&M
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