Warriors’ Wild Ride: #10 MDY Shocks #6 Berman, Reaches Sarachek Tier I Finals
- Marvin Azrak
- Mar 31
- 3 min read
The #10 Magen David Warriors are heading to the Sarachek Championship after a heart-stopping 58-57 win over the #6 Berman Cougars in the semifinals on Sunday. The lowest-seeded finalist in Sarachek history won their fourth straight single-elimination game by single digits, and now there's one more hill left to climb: the #4 TABC Storm on Monday.
Josh Chabbott started the party with a bucket, kicking off his massive 20-point afternoon. Berman's Alex August answered with a deep three, putting the Cougars up 5-3. The stars on both sides had arrived early. Both teams came out in identical zone defenses, an interesting chess match from the jump. Early on, the Cougars' pressure overwhelmed MDY, forcing turnovers and capitalizing on them. Noah Lichtman for Berman scooped and scored, pushing the lead to 7-3. Once MDY settled in, they took over. Jack Dweck nailed a three. Then a steal led to a 2-on-1 fast break—Dweck to Chabot for the finish, and a 10-0 Warriors run had them up 13-7. Dweck continued his hot shooting from Friday's upset of #2 Shalhevet, drilling another triple to extend the lead to 16-9. Chabbott pulled off a spin-o-rama in the lane, and MDY ended the first quarter ahead 20-11.
MDY dared Berman to shoot threes, and early on, they weren't falling. Meanwhile, August, Berman's star, looked off his game, and the Magen David student section let him hear it with "OVERRATED" chants. The Warriors kept running their signature Carolina play repeatedly, even though that wasn't working.
They let Berman hang around long enough to show why they're here for the first time in school history. August got a bucket and the foul, yelling at the MDY bench as his boys clawed back within five. The Cougars started getting to the line, finishing the half on an 11-2 burst, slicing a 27-14 Warriors cushion to 29-25.
Berman opened the half in a 1-3-1 box-and-one defense on Chabbott, forcing him to kick out. Then, their shooters got hot. Three straight threes tied the game at 34, forcing an MDY timeout. August hit from the corner. Then, from the wing. Now Berman was up 40-34. MDY struggled against the press, and Chabbott got swarmed whenever he touched the ball.
Magen David needed a hero, so enter Meyer Sakkall. He buried a deep three to keep MDY in it. Itai Rozmaryn, who started the comeback with a couple of triples, pushed through contact to push their lead to 46-39. The Warriors had chances but weren’t hitting shots like Berman. August, in transition, made it 48-39, but Chabbott responded by going the entire length of the court, cutting it to seven. Then, right before the buzzer, valedictorian Phillip Sherr came up with a huge steal and got fouled, making it 48-42 Berman after three.
Entering the fourth, Magen David coach Ike "Spike" Dweck knew he needed sharpshooters. So he called on Alfonse Shiloach. He drilled a three to start the quarter, cutting the deficit to 48-45. MDY, realizing they needed to counter Berman's shooting, went all-in on the deep ball. They also adjusted their defensive focus, making life challenging for Berman by playing a high zone. With 3:15 left, Sakkall went end-end for a layup, then splashed a vast triple to bring MDY within two, 53-51. Moments later, Shiloach hit another three. 55-54. Then, with 2:11 left, he hit a jumper, and the Warriors were back on top, 56-55. August responded, retaking the lead for Berman. Yet Solly Hara got fouled and calmly sank both free throws. 58-57 MDY with 1:45 remaining.
With 27.4 seconds on the clock, Chabbott was called for traveling, giving Berman a shot to win it. August pulled up for a three from the left wing—brick. Berman got the offensive rebound, but Lichtman tried to find Ariel Hassan under the hoop in the scramble, and the pass sailed out of bounds. 1.2 seconds remained , MDY ball.
The Warriors inbounded a long pass, but Rozmaryn intercepted it. He launched a half-court heave at the buzzer, which looked good but rimmed out! The Warriors hung on and are now headed to Championship Monday' for the second consecutive year, but this time as the underdogs. It makes you wonder if they’re truly a team of destiny we're watching and the ones who'll break the programs 23-year Sarachek drought. There's only one way to find out.
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