The wait is over. The Yeshiva University Maccabees are headed to Boston to take on the Tufts Jumbos in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Macs will compete in a region that includes D3 Powerhouses such as D3hoops.com’s #1 team, NYU, #10 Hampden-Sydney, #14 St. Thomas (TX) as well as their opponent, #13 Tufts. Besides for Tufts, YU’s opening pool also contains #15 Redlands and St. Joseph’s Maine.
Tufts finished their season with an impressive 21-5 overall record, including a noteworthy 12-1 record at home. They ended the season tied for second place in the NESCAC with an 8-2 record and after defeating Williams in the opening round, the Jumbos were beaten by Trinity in the conference semifinals. However, their spectacular season was good enough to earn them one of the coveted 21 “Pool C bids” for teams that don’t win their conference.
After his Skyline Championship heroics on Sunday at Farmingdale State, Zevi Samet will lead the #15 seeded Macs into Boston for a Round of 64 date at the #2 seeded Tufts Jumbos on Friday afternoon. (Photo Credit: YU athletics)
The Macs played the Jumbos earlier in the season when Tufts came to town to the Max Stern Athletic Center on Thursday, January 2, as part of a greater New York-Philadelphia road trip. In the Macs last non-conference game of the regular season, they put up a valiant effort against the Jumbos but were outmatched by a score of 82-74. Tufts’ Joshua Bernstein wreaked havoc in the paint as the 6-11 center finished the day with 20 points and 15 rebounds. James Morakis also had an impressive performance with 18 points on 4/5 shooting from deep. For the Macs, Zevi led the way with 31 points while Yoav Oselka led the team with 8 rebounds. Or Sundjyvsky only played 2 minutes for Yeshiva.
This matchup caught many bracketologists off guard, as the committee typically avoids first round regular season rematches, although there is no official rule against it. On our MacsLive stream, Akiva Poppers remarked about his predictions, “You always have to leave ‘other’ in case the committee decides to do something crazy. The committee has decided to do that.” He also pointed out that it was a slight mis-seeding by the committee, as Tufts, as the #8 team in the NPI rankings, should’ve been in line to face a 15 seed. However, YU would’ve been considered a 14 seed based on the rankings. He added that both Redlands and St. Joseph’s ME were both in the NPI Top 32, giving them the equivalent of two seven or eight seeds facing off.
After hearing the results, Max Zakheim said, “Look, we played them, we know them, that was a game where we were right there until the end. We’re expecting to win.” Effy Freundlich pointed out that in order to get to this spot, the Macs needed to beat Sarah Lawrence and Farmingdale in rematches of teams they lost to earlier in the year. Tufts is next in line. He said, “I’m hoping we can continue the trend and take another W.”
Tip-off is scheduled for 1:15pm. This is the opening game of the entire tournament so there will likely be national attention focused on this one. The winner of this game will take on the winner of the Redlands/St. Joseph’s Maine game (being played at 4:05pm on Friday). If the Macs were to beat the Jumbos, it would be an 8:50pm game Saturday night. If the Jumbo’s were to best the Macs, it would be a 5:50pm game. Ticketing and other information can be found at this link: https://gotuftsjumbos.com/feature/2025NCAAMHOOPS1ST2NDROUNDS
If you missed it, be sure to check out our Selection Show Live Stream for the team’s reaction to our opponent, analysis from Akiva Poppers, and special interviews with Max Zakheim and Effy Freundlich! Link: https://www.youtube.com/live/RuFuapwtTw4
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