Last Monday night, RYNJ’s eighth grade boys basketball team arrived at The Moriah School as they tried to be the first team in the last three years to stun this squad of Moriah athletes at home. However, Moriah (3-0) did what they do best—win, as the final scoreboard displayed, 58-35.
Prior to the tipoff, Moriah’s principal, Rabbi Alter, recited several chapters of tehilim in memory of Ezra Schwartz. Then the game began.
RYNJ (2-2) started out ahead thanks to Ohrel Bolour’s free throw and Ikey Gutlove’s fastbreak layup. In the beginning of the game, RYNJ was doing the unthinkable—they were beating Moriah. Midway through the opening quarter, Moriah’s star point guard, Rafi Lewis, found his chemistry with the 6’3” center, Katz, for the start of many baskets. When the buzzer sounded, Moriah was on top, 18-9.
The ‘dynamic duo’, Lewis and Katz, continued the momentum into the second quarter. However, RYNJ’s Shmuel Coates decided enough was enough and he led his team on a 10-0 run. Following this stretch, both teams headed towards their locker rooms with the score at 29-19.
When the second half began, Lewis’ name was sealed in the record books; he became the only Moriah basketball player to ever hit a three-pointer in a season game. Lewis continued adding to this feat, by impressing the crowd with his fantastic drives towards the hoop. In tandem, Katz and his incredibly high hook shot completely shattered RYNJ’s defense.
Katz led Moriah with a career-high 31 points and 15 rebounds, followed by Rafi Lewis’ 13 points and 7 assists. Coates led RYNJ with 12 points and 8 rebounds along with Yonah Hook’s 6 points.
By Zach Horowitz
