Last week the SAR Sting were given an amazing opportunity to attend the fifth annual Steve Glouberman Memorial Basketball Tournament held at the Shalhevet High School in Los Angeles. Ten boys teams and 10 girls teams were in attendance, with SAR, Frisch, HAFTR, Ramaz and Ma’ayanot representing the Metropolitan Yeshiva League in the girls’ division. Shalhevet, YULA, Katz Yeshiva of Boca, Hebrew Academy of Miami and Maimonides School from Boston rounded out the field. The first day featured seeding matchups, and although SAR lost a two point heartbreaker to HAFTR, they came roaring back to defeat Katz and Frisch all in the same day. Friday, playoff rounds began as SAR was seeded fourth behind Shalhevet (1), Maimonides (2) and HAFTR (3). SAR defeated Ma’ayanot in a close game that went back and forth before some clutch 3-point shooting by Lucy Hecht and foul shots by Sophia Reich sealed the win.
After a wonderful shabbaton hosted by the Shalhevet community, SAR faced Shalhevet, the number one seed and host team in a semi-final match up. Shalhevet’s uptempo style and relentless pressure seemed to overwhelm SAR as it took their offense a long time to find their groove. Down nine at half time, SAR kept battling back, but were matched bucket for bucket as the game progressed. Down 14 points with under four minutes to go, SAR looked to be in trouble. Through the stifling defense of guard Laura Brandwein and the strong rebounding by center Samantha Horowitz, SAR forced Shalhevet into foul trouble as they battled their way back. Olivia Weinstein’s lay-up tied the game with 10 seconds to go and forced overtime. In overtime, Lucy Hecht and Shalhevet’s Kiku Shaw traded 3 pointers but Reich’s ability to drive the lane proved too much for Shalhevet. SAR emerged with a 65-61 victory and faced a formidable foe in Maimonides two hours later in the finals. Although they gave it their best effort and mounted multiple comebacks, the SAR fatigue and strength of the Maimonides guards proved too much for SAR. Maimonides won the tournament and SAR was thrilled to come in second place. SAR’s Hecht and Reich were named to the all-tournament team. SAR thanks the Glouberman family and the entire Shalhevet community for allowing them to be a part of such a special event.
By Yeshiva League Pass
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