At about 6:15 on Sunday night, the Tier II Semifinals will commence, with #9 Posnack Rams against #13 MTA Lions being the first matchup of two. These two teams have made their way to Tier II in different fashions. Posnack lost to YULA on Thursday, which placed them in a Tier II Qualifier against Beren, which they won; MTA defeated Hillel of Pittsburgh on Thursday, which placed them in a Tier II Qualifier against Beth Tfiloh, which they won on an Eitan Warburg buzzer-beater.
Posnack is led by Junior SG Joshua Schultz, who has made a name for himself this tournament. As of now, Schultz ranks in the top 3 for points scored in Sarachek 2019. Other key players for Posnack include Senior SF Joel Brandwein, who dominated the boards against Beren, and Freshman Abie Bonkovski, who has made numerous clutch shots for the Rams. MTA is led by Warburg, as well as Seniors Hudy Weiss and Eitan Pfeiffer.
There are numerous things to look out for in this matchup. Firstly is how MTA handles Brandwein and this Posnack team inside. MTA lacks great size, and it will be interesting to see how Coach Shlomo Weissberg handles this. He could go with usual starter Avi Wolk, or use the taller Joey Hernandez-Burg, Wolk’s usual replacement when not on the floor. Another thing to look for is three point shooting. Posnack excels from outside the arc, but MTA is not too shabby themselves. Lastly, it will be interesting to see how Posnack’s running transition offense and trapping defense matchup with MTA’s half-court offense and man-to-man defense.
The winner of this matchup will face the winner of Fasman vs. Valley Torah in the Tier II Championship, which will be held at 1:00 on Championship Monday.
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