Day 4: ‘Big Shot’ Matt Sunday arrived and we were set to play our cross-town-rivals, the Shalhavet Fire Hawks. We had beaten them by 20 points earlier in the year. Most of our team had an attitude of overconfidence, thinking “this game is in the bag”.The Fire Hawks quickly put an end to all that bravado, outplaying us in every way.Down three with 24 seconds left, our fans stood in shocked silence as their hope began to fade.Senior (and eventual Tournament MVP) Jack Gindi inbounded the ball and I dribbled up court. With five seconds left I swung the ball to senior Matthew Reich, who had to shoot but was smothered by the defense. He rose…was about to shoot… and a whistle sounded. The gym erupted.Finally it quieted down we all looked at the refs…They awarded Matthew 3 free throws! The fans exploded yet again. Matthew had a chance to put us into overtime.He hit the first…he hit the second…AND HE HIT THE THIRD. The Max Stern Athletic Center was booming with chants of “Matthew!” He had just made the biggest shots in his high school career…or at least we thought he did.We then found ourselves in the same exact position, down by one in overtime. The ball was passed to Matthew again, at the 3 point line…he didn’t hesitate. He drained the three.We were up two and this was without one of their best players Yisroel Solomon, who had fouled out in the fourth quarter! We never relinquished the lead after that.“Never give up on anything” Coach Dave Winick told us with a huge smile in the locker room afterward.This game made history! We were going to the championship game against SAR. We would have an opportunity to avenge last year’s loss!Day 5: Champions at last!The gym was filled with fans draped in black and yellow from head to toe. SAR was pretty confident after last year’s triumph.SAR won the tip, the gym going insane, as the SAR point guard brought the ball up. He drove to the basket but had the ball stripped.Gindi converted the turnover into points. A great start for us! The game was extremely close, both teams trading blows.It went down to the wire until we went on a 6-0 run with two minutes left and SAR was forced to foul (there is no shot clock in the Sarachek tournament).I was the one they fouled.I calmly knocked down both free throws, putting the game out of reach.The five seniors on the team came together at center court as time expired, reveling in this amazing end to our career.The place went into an absolute frenzy, our fans storming the court and chanting in unison.The last time YULA won was seven years ago, it felt so good! Nothing could have ruined that moment.The deed was done.The veterans had accomplished what they set out to do for three years. We were Sarachek champs! So take that Dante! If Gavriel’s recounting of YULA’s title run hasn’t left you with a smile, despite perhaps longing for days gone by, please see a cardiologist. You may not have a heart.I, for one, have a number of furious downstairs neighbors who can attest to my excitement, nostalgia not depressing me in the slightest.Watching the fans storm the court brought me right back to that center circle seven years earlier, where euphoric pandemonium rang free, and I could not be happier.YU-LA…YU-LA.
Ode to nostalgia: The diary of a champion
Comment: Throughout the tournament I was engulfed with memories and emotions I had not felt since 2005, as a member of the last YULA team to win it all at Sarachek.
Day 4: ‘Big Shot’ Matt Sunday arrived and we were set to play our cross-town-rivals, the Shalhavet Fire Hawks. We had beaten them by 20 points earlier in the year. Most of our team had an attitude of overconfidence, thinking “this game is in the bag”.The Fire Hawks quickly put an end to all that bravado, outplaying us in every way.Down three with 24 seconds left, our fans stood in shocked silence as their hope began to fade.Senior (and eventual Tournament MVP) Jack Gindi inbounded the ball and I dribbled up court. With five seconds left I swung the ball to senior Matthew Reich, who had to shoot but was smothered by the defense. He rose…was about to shoot… and a whistle sounded. The gym erupted.Finally it quieted down we all looked at the refs…They awarded Matthew 3 free throws! The fans exploded yet again. Matthew had a chance to put us into overtime.He hit the first…he hit the second…AND HE HIT THE THIRD. The Max Stern Athletic Center was booming with chants of “Matthew!” He had just made the biggest shots in his high school career…or at least we thought he did.We then found ourselves in the same exact position, down by one in overtime. The ball was passed to Matthew again, at the 3 point line…he didn’t hesitate. He drained the three.We were up two and this was without one of their best players Yisroel Solomon, who had fouled out in the fourth quarter! We never relinquished the lead after that.“Never give up on anything” Coach Dave Winick told us with a huge smile in the locker room afterward.This game made history! We were going to the championship game against SAR. We would have an opportunity to avenge last year’s loss!Day 5: Champions at last!The gym was filled with fans draped in black and yellow from head to toe. SAR was pretty confident after last year’s triumph.SAR won the tip, the gym going insane, as the SAR point guard brought the ball up. He drove to the basket but had the ball stripped.Gindi converted the turnover into points. A great start for us! The game was extremely close, both teams trading blows.It went down to the wire until we went on a 6-0 run with two minutes left and SAR was forced to foul (there is no shot clock in the Sarachek tournament).I was the one they fouled.I calmly knocked down both free throws, putting the game out of reach.The five seniors on the team came together at center court as time expired, reveling in this amazing end to our career.The place went into an absolute frenzy, our fans storming the court and chanting in unison.The last time YULA won was seven years ago, it felt so good! Nothing could have ruined that moment.The deed was done.The veterans had accomplished what they set out to do for three years. We were Sarachek champs! So take that Dante! If Gavriel’s recounting of YULA’s title run hasn’t left you with a smile, despite perhaps longing for days gone by, please see a cardiologist. You may not have a heart.I, for one, have a number of furious downstairs neighbors who can attest to my excitement, nostalgia not depressing me in the slightest.Watching the fans storm the court brought me right back to that center circle seven years earlier, where euphoric pandemonium rang free, and I could not be happier.YU-LA…YU-LA.