MacsLive Reporting Services (New York, New York)

The first of the two exciting Tier I Semifinals to take place on Sunday will feature the #1 SAR Sting, and the #5 MTA Lions. As in the other matchup, this game features two teams who are each very familiar with the other after three previous meetings this season

SAR and MTA split their regular season matchups with MTA winning one game at the buzzer and SAR winning the other contest in overtime. In the Yeshiva League playoffs, SAR managed to take care of MTA, thanks to tremendous three point shooting. 

Led by point guard Jeremy Felder and big man Zev Senter, the Lions will look to work the ball inside and out to create open looks for their deep and balanced roster. MTA hopes that shooting guard Shai Kaminetzky will cause trouble for SAR defenders with his good shooting. The key for the Lions though will be the play of Senter. In the past two games, both big MTA wins, he has put up a double-double against Or Chaim, and an impressive 21 points and 6 rebounds against North Shore. 

As was the case in their game against Yavneh, we should expect Coach Rafi Halpert’s team from Riverdale to generate points from all over the place. Point guard Zack Dicker will look to lead the Sting past the Lions, using a Princeton-style offense. The offense demands lots of passing along the perimeter, and good off-ball screens. Look for Halpert to rotate his guards, especially Dicker, Adam Schreiber, and Joe Klein.  It will be crucial for SAR’s big men to step up and control the boards. If not, the Sting culd be in for a long day against an MTA team that is peaking at exactly the right time.

Look for the Sting to play strong defense, and keep mental errors to a minimum. Coach Halpert told MacsLive before the tournament that these would be the two things that could really boost their chances of repeating as Sarachek Champions.

As always, all the games in the Max Stern Athletic Center will be broadcast live in HD video by MacsLive at www.macslive.com.