Memphis Yeshiva Invitational

11-2-2013 | Warriors Ride Out Hurricanes, 52-48, Advance to Tier 2 Championship

11-2-2013 | Warriors Ride Out Hurricanes, 52-48, Advance to Tier 2 Championship

By: Shua Friedman

The second Tier 2 semi-final game of the evening featured the Scheck Hillel Hurricanes against the RASG Warriors. The Hurricanes started off their game against the Warriors firing on all cylinders, making their first 3 shots from the field to make the score 8-0. But the Warriors wouldn’t have it, as they made two straight layups by Yosef Hochner and Morris Esformes to get them back in the game. Esformes then sunk a three-pointer to make it a one point game, but a layup and the ensuing free throw by Nissim Franco of the Hurricanes gave them an 11-7 lead. But the Hurricanes did not stop there, as Jacques Kaswan swished a three-pointer to raise the lead. Morris Esformes wouldn’t have it though, and he countered with a three-pointer of his own for the Warriors. Jack Esformes, his brother, wanted one of his own, and sunk a three-pointer with 20 seconds left to make the game 14-13 in favor of the Hurricanes.

When the second half started, the Warriors came out pressing. But on the first play of the second half, the Hurricanes broke it beautifully, resulting in an easy layup. The Hurricanes came out with energy, scoring 6 points straight to make the game 31-24. Although Moris Esformes stopped the scoring streak for the Hurricanes with a three-pointer, the Warriors came back again with another layup off the press, making the score 34-26. After a few exchanges of foul shots and free throws, the score was 39-34, with the Warriors on top to end the 3rd quarter.

With the 4th quarter being ‘do or die’ for the Hurricanes, they began to claw back. Some crucial shooting by Kaswan lowered their deficit to only two points, 39-37. A layup by Alex Froimzon of the Hurricanes tied the game up, but the Warriors came right back at them with a layup to go back up by 2 points. The quarter looked as if it were just going to keep going back and forth, with both teams exchanging leads constantly. The Esformes brothers were back at it again, each making crucial shots to keep their lead up. But Froimzon was still clawing, and made a jumper from the elbow to tie the game back up at 45-45. After a trade-off of free throws from each team, the Warriors led 49-47, with a minute and a half left in the game. With 38 seconds left to go in the game, Morris Esformes of the Warriors put up two crucial free throws to extend the lead by three. Then, with 18 seconds left, the Hurricanes turned the ball over. The Hurricanes were not to be denied as they stole the inbounds pass, but missed a three-pointer. The Warriors went on to win the game, 52-48. The Warriors move on to play the Flatbush Falcons in the Tier 2 championship, while the Hurricanes battle Fasman Yeshiva tomorrow for third place. The leading scorer for the RASG Warriors in the win was Morris Esformes with 22 points while the Scheck Hillel Hurricanes were led by Jacques kaswan with 10 points in defeat.

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply