On May 13th, Coach Forman and his undefeated (10-0) squad hosted SAR for the YMSSA semi-finals playoff game.
Moriah started off very strong with its stellar fast breaks by Jon Comet, Rafi Lewis, and Isaac Horowitz. As the first quarter ended, Moriah was in control with the score 14-5. Horowitz, who scored 10 points in the first quarter, led all scorers with the game-high 14 points, followed by SAR’s Caleb Siegel with 13 points.
As the second quarter began, Moriah’s offense exploded. Gaby Katz sank a hook shot from inside the paint, finishing with 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 blocks. Comet also played a smart game, leading the team with 3 assists and finishing with 7 points. By the end of the first half, the game already looked over, with Moriah leading 27-9.
However, during the third quarter, SAR got hungry, and not for pizza. SAR’s Siegel played extremely aggressively on the offensive board, grabbing almost every rebound. Siegel had 15 rebounds, 8 of them offensive. But, thanks to Moriah’s “Sixth Man” cheering squad, led by sixth-grader Jason Alter, the team never lost its lead. As the third quarter came to an end, SAR was back in the game, trailing 33-21.
As the clock began ticking in the fourth quarter, Moriah’s defense took over. Collectively the squad had 15 steals, and Lewis had 5 of them. It dominated the glass, out-rebounding SAR, 41-33.
As the final buzzer sounded, Moriah players and fans were cheering with joy as they beat SAR, 47-26.
Now Moriah, with the first seed, will play Noam in the YMSSA Championship!
By Zach Horowitz
