by Ilan Katz
A year after having their championship game ruined by COVID-19, Yeshiva League Pass lifts the Tier I trophy, winning all three playoff games by double digits. Below, we recap all the games of the postseason.
Tier I
Quarterfinals
(1) Symphony Care Network 71, (8) Egert and Cohen 52
Egert and Cohen put a scare into the 1-seed, leading by as many as 12 and by one at halftime. But Yisroel Wasser of SCN got hot and made six 3-pointers in the game, finishing with 27 points. Egert and Cohen, led all season by Jackie Haber, can hang their head high after a valiant effort and a solid year.
(5) Good Guys 67, (4) Reishit Studs 51
Zack Cytryn led the way for the Good Guys with 20 points as they advance to the semifinals. The Studs were without their full roster, while the Good Guys had 10 players register in the scoring column. The Studs had an excellent season, finishing 5-2 and in the Tier I playoffs.
(3) SINAI Schools 43, TC Gold Seals 40
The Gold Seals end their season in heartbreaking fashion, but they should be proud of what they accomplished this season. All of their losses this year were within a couple of possessions, they just couldn’t pull it out when it mattered. Danny Weinberger led SINAI Schools in scoring while Chesky Lewin paced the Gold Seals.
(2) Yeshiva League Pass 65, Imrei Binah 43
Yeshiva League Pass came out a bit sluggish, yet they still led by seven at the half. But the Heller twins and Raanan Glashofer each scored in double figures, and they cruised in the second half, looking like the elite team they were all season long.
Semifinals
Symphony Care Network 72, Good Guys 64
The Good Guys were in the lead for the majority of the 1st half, but Symphony Care Network came out on fire in the second. All season long, it has been star guard Yisroel Wasser’s team, but the story in this one was the shooting of Ari Schuman and Dov Sokolin, who combined to hit six threes, all in the second half. The Good Guys weren’t as deep as usual in this game, but should be congratulated on an excellent season.
Yeshiva League Pass 62, SINAI Schools 49
AJ Bennett of SINAI Schools had his best game of the season with 21 points, but it was enough to beat a juggernaut. Raanan Glashofer continued his postseason tear for YLP with 17 points, while Moshe Heller led all scorers with 26 to lead his team to the championship game for the second straight year.
Championship
Yeshiva League Pass 69, Symphony Care Network 56
After last season’s championship came was cancelled due to COVID-19, Yeshiva League Pass got the chance to finish this year and hoisted the FM Home Loans trophy. YLP founder and team captain Moshe Heller was fantastic as usual, going for 24 points, making one acrobatic layup after another. But the story in this one was the incredible play at both ends by Raanan Glashofer, who had 23 points, all in the second half. He would consistently draw a charge or get a steal on one end and get an and-one at the other.
Symphony Care Network walks away with their heads held high, as they finished the regular season as they top seed and finished the season in the championship game.
Tier II
Opening Round
(3) Hot Poppers 65, (6) Neveh Fighters 51
The Fighters certainly fought all season long, though they finish the season without a win. The Hot Poppers were led by Hami Alexander in this one, and advance to the semifinals. They controlled this game from nearly the opening tip.
(5) Probstein 123 Midrash Ballers 50, (4) Sherlocks Hats 38
Sherlocks Hats had some impressive performances this season, but couldn’t pull it together on a consistent enough basis and they bow out in their opening playoff game. Nachum Peterseil led Sherlocks with 12 points, while Itzik Mazeh and Ari Sprung also scored in double figures. Nat Assayag (16) and Shimon Smaza (15) led the Ballers in the postseason win.
Semifinals
(3) Hot Poppers 57, (1) Chovat Piaseczna 48
By seeding, this would go down as the biggest upset of the postseason from either tier. Chovat Piaseczna had a 1st-round bye, while perhaps the Hot Poppers carried over some momentum from their opening round win to fuel them to this upset. Hillel Schwartz had 16 points to lead Chovat Piaseczna.
(2) DNA Lab Center 53, (5) Probstein 123 Midrash Ballers 42
David Sasson had a game-high 13 points to lead DNA Lab Center to a championship berth. Nat Assayag continued his stellar FM Home Loans IBL career, once again scoring in double figures.
Championship
Hot Poppers 39, DNA Lab Center 22
It was not exactly an offensive clinic, but the Hot Poppers played fundamental basketball to lift the AFI Cup. For the Hot Poppers, Hami Alexander made plays consistently on both ends, while Judah Klein displayed dazzling footwork and was a matchup nightmare. Congratulations to both teams on excellent seasons!
Comments