The TABC JV and varsity basketball teams hosted the Hillel Heat in a crucial JV/varsity matchup doubleheader on Thanksgiving Eve in what was also the home opener for the JV team. This was the first real challenge for both the JV and varsity squads as they looked to remain unbeaten.
TABC raced out to a 9-0 run in the first quarter of the JV game after both teams split buckets. The Heat were able to claw back through an 8-0 run of their own via stellar 3-point shooting. Whenever they came close to tying this game though, the Storm always had a response, making big play after big play and regaining their cushion. The Storm went into the halftime locker room up seven and Coach Shlomo Weissberg was determined to hold on to that lead and not allow the Heat back into the game. Immediately off the inbound, TABC hit a triple and set the tone early in the second half. After leading by as much as 13 in the third quarter, Hillel had one last rally in them, cutting the deficit to four with just five minutes remaining in the game. Thanks to big plays from star freshman phenom Ezra Adams, a big 3-point play from classmate Tani Stein and sophomore Sammy Haberman, the Storm were able to shut the door one last time on the Heat, going on a 12-1 run. The final score was 70-55 TABC. Adams, Haberman and Stein led the way with 18, 16 and 15 points, respectively. Josh Neiss ‘28 was composed all night at point guard and David Kranzler provided a huge spark off the bench.
Next up was varsity. The Storm were heading into the big clash without star guard Yonah Mandel ‘25. Heading into the game, Hillel’s varsity team was undefeated. Both TABC and Hillel were initially slow out of the gate. With Mandel out of action, junior Yonatan Faber was given the start and did not disappoint from beyond the arc. Eyal Kinderlehrer ‘25 shouldered a lot of the responsibility as well and was stellar on the glass all night. TABC played effective defense on Hillel’s star guard for the majority of the first half and as they led by nine at halftime, it appeared they were on their way to a comfortable win. The Heat crawled back into the game and cut the TABC lead down to just one with under two minutes left in the third quarter. The Storm then scored the last five points in that frame and the first eight points of the fourth quarter to go on a 12-0 run. TABC won by a final score of 63-53 to improve to 5-0 in the regular season. While the team got great contributions on the scoresheet from Faber, Akiva Borgen ‘26, Dovid Saks ‘25, all-around hustle and hard work from Bentzion Keiser ‘25, and solid play from Sammy Levine ‘25 off the bench, it was Kinderlehrer who stole the show with a whopping 22 points and 23 rebounds to go with it!
