On Wednesday night, the Macs suffered a second-half collapse at the hands of the University of St. Joseph (CT) Blue Jays, losing the game 70-66. Going into the half down by nine, St. Joseph solved the Macs’ zone defense, and a late push by the Macs ultimately proved to be unsuccessful as they dropped the third of their last four games.
How it Happened:
The Macs won the opening tip, and Zevi Samet immediately picked it up for a fastbreak layup to give the Macs an early 2-0 lead. Lence Altenor, the Macs’ nightmare from last season, drilled a three from the wing to give the Blue Jays their first points of the night.
The Macs only made one of their subsequent nine field goals, but with just over nine minutes into the game, they jumped out to a 15-9 lead off of back-to-back threes by Roy Itcovichi and Max Zakheim. This ignited a 9-0 run, highlighted by a beautiful feed by Itcovichi to Luke Cronin for an easy layup.
The Blue Jays cut the deficit to 4 points, but Effy Fruendlich grabbed a loose ball and took it to the house for a slam that got the crowd rocking at the Max Stern Athletics Center. This led to 6 consecutive points by Freundlich to give the Macs a 24-14 lead with 5:51 to go, prompting St. Joseph’s Coach Glen Miller to call a timeout.
Jonathan Levy and Amadou Kamara traded threes to start some high-scoring, back-and-forth ball to close out the half. The Macs took a 34-25 lead going into the break.
The Blue Jays came out of the locker room hot, going on a 7-0 run highlighted by a wide-open Kevin Cummings three. Zevi Samet ended that run by drilling a corner three to bring the lead back to five points 1:40 into the half. However, two quick fouls from Zakheim put him in some foul trouble, and Coach Steinmetz was forced to put him on the bench.
The Blue Jays started to heat up from downtown, starting the half 3-5 from deep as they tied the game at 42 apiece off of an Altenor trey from the corner just over five minutes into the half. About a minute later, Yoav Oselka responded for the Macs by converting an and-one opportunity.
Some back-and-forth followed with multiple lead changes. Zakheim briefly came back into the game but was called for an offensive foul for his fourth of the night. The Blue Jays continued to take advantage in the post, jumping out to a four-point lead with just over six minutes left to play.
With about four and a half minutes to go, Roy Itcovichi drilled a three to pull the Macs within one point, but Cisse nailed a paint jumper as the Blue Jays continued to land shots.
Tyshawn Jackson banked a three to pad St. Joseph’s lead to seven with 1:28 to go. Zevi Samet responded with a three of his own and Jonathan Levy picked off a pass on the next possession. Unfortunately, Samet turned the ball over with 14 seconds left, which led to the foul game.
Faced with a one-and-one, Altenor missed his first free throw. Samet quickly drove down to the other end and Cisse got called for goaltending on the ensuing layup, making it a two-point game with 6 seconds left.
After a timeout, Samet quickly forced a turnover with 4.4 seconds to go. Jonathan Levy tried to get it to Samet on the inbound for an open three but Zevi was called out of bounds. The Macs sent Jackson to the line, who missed his free throw, but Friedrich Feldrappe grabbed the offensive rebound and quickly hit two free throws to seal a 70-66 St. Joseph victory.
Dothan Bardichev and the Macs let a lead slip away in a heartbreaking 70-66 defeat to Saint Joseph Connecuit at the Max Stern Athletic Center on Wednesday. (Photo Credit: Akiva Poppers/Macslive)
Zone Defense:
The Macs chose to roll with a 3-2 zone defense, departing from the man-to-man defense that non-conference teams have feasted on in recent games. In the first half, the Macs managed to contain St. Joseph’s inside scoring, only allowing 10 points inside the paint and holding them to 10/33 from the field (30.3%.) However, St. Joseph made some offensive adjustments in the locker room, as they looked unstoppable inside during the second half, scoring 20 points inside the paint and steamrolling the Macs’ defense. Their three-point shooting also started to come alive in the second half, going 5/11 while missing a few wide-open looks. With Dothan Bardichev limited due to injury, Max Zakheim in foul trouble, and Or Sundjyvsky sitting for most of the second half, the Macs were largely forced to rely on guys who usually come off the bench.
Levy’s Emerging Impact:
One bright spot from the game is that Jonathan Levy has really taken a step up in the rotation in recent games. The 6’4” freshman from Hollywood, Florida, played the best game of his still-brief YU career, posting career-highs of 7 points, 2 assists, and 3 steals. However, Levy’s most significant impact lies away from the scoresheet. He forced stops on multiple occasions, made some nice back-door cuts, and showed a lot of heart throughout. When asked about Levy’s impact, Zevi Samet said, "It’s all the little things that he does for us. Whether it’s hustling back on D, finding guys open on cuts, making cuts, or rebounding. He’s done a lot of things for us and they don’t show up on the scoresheet, but his presence has been felt by the other guys and the coaches have certainly noticed it.”
Mental Mistakes:
The Macs let a very winnable game slip away tonight. Despite their effort, defensive lapses allowed St. Joseph to take advantage both inside the paint and from the perimeter. The Macs struggled with their shot selection, taking too many ill-advised shots. In the game's final moments, Zevi Samet unfortunately stepped out of bounds on an inbound play, nullifying a potential go-ahead opportunity. Max Zakheim also faced foul trouble in the second half, limiting him to under 9 minutes of play after halftime. To secure wins, the team will need to tighten up mentally and execute more consistently-valuable lessons for any sport.
For Yeshiva (4-4 Overall, 1-0 Skyline):
Zevi Samet led the Macs with 16 points and 4 assists, while Luke Cronin led the team with 9 rebounds, all of which came in the first half.
Roy Itcovichi had 11 points in 30 minutes off the bench, Max Zakheim scored 9 points.
The Macs outscored the Blue Jays 18-10 in the paint in the first half but got outscored 20-12 in the second.
The Macs outrebounded the Blue Jays 24-20 in the first half.
The Macs shot 24-57 from the field (42.1%) and 9-23 from three-point range (39.1%)
For St. Joseph (6-3 Overall, 1-0 GNAC):
Lence Altenor led the Blue Jays with 22 points, shooting 6-13 from downtown, while Kevin Cummings was limited to 12 points while shooting just 2-13 from beyond the arc.
Adolphe Cisse recorded a double-double, scoring 12 points while bringing down 11 rebounds, finishing as the only player on either team with double-digit rebounds.
Friedrich Feldrappe scored 8 points while grabbing 9 boards and dishing out 6 assists.
St. Joseph outrebounded the Macs by a margin of 17-10 in the second half.
St. Joseph did not make a free throw until the game’s final second, going just 2-5 from the charity stripe on the night.
Up Next:
The Macs continue their 5-game homestand on December 30, hosting the Wesleyan Cardinals (10-0 overall, 0-0 NESCAC). Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 PM at the Max Stern Athletic Center and will be streamed right here on MacsLive.com
MacsLive:
For more Yeshiva Maccabees content, follow MacsLive on Twitter and Instagram, and subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Comments