Comedy in the Stands, Tragedy at the Line: Macs Drop Sloppy Season Opener to Chapman
- Marvin Azrak
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
Under the bright lights of the Max Stern Athletic Center and celebrating its 40th anniversary, the Yeshiva University Maccabees returned for the first time in 250 days to a festive atmosphere. Comedian Dovie Neuburger was in the celebrity row, watching the opening chapter of this core’s “One Last Ride,” waiting to see the identity of this group. Instead, along with the rest of the Jewish basketball population, he saw a sloppy, chaotic, frustrating Game 1 — yet somehow still a winnable one.
This 81-77 loss was a missed opportunity to make a statement in the opening game of the final season of this core. Still, it’s only one game, meaning this core's final rollercoaster ride is far from over.
How It Happened:
Chapman was aggressive. YU was aggressive. Seven months of buildup exploded into rushed shots, wild passes, and both teams tried too hard to make the perfect first impression.
Yair Dovrat, Welcome to the Macs. First bucket of the season: a three. 3–0 YU.
Zevi Samet did Zevi Samet things. Downhill, strong. 9–2 YU, Chapman timeout.
The game slowed, whistles picked up, offensive fouls everywhere. YU’s help defense was late on a pick-and-pop. Chapman ate it up: 12–9.
The Macs’ defense tightened, with hands in passing lanes and deflections galore, forcing 25 Chapman turnovers on the night.
Zevi nailed his spin-o-rama to reach 11 points early. 23–19 YU.
YU’s offense fell flat and Chapman ripped off an 11–0 run for a 30–23 lead, as YU didn't score for four straight minutes.
Finally, the defense sparked offense. Alex Kirievsky hit his first bucket. Freshman Nate Jacobs' got a layup. Samet stole and finished. Or Sundjyvsky ran the 2-on-1 to perfection. A 12–0 YU run saw them go up 35–30. However, Chapman tied it with a Jake Heberle top-of-the-key three. 35–35 at half.
The teams traded buckets for the start of the second half. With 12 minutes left, Zevi nailed a three to make it 55–53 YU.
Or Sundjyvsky drew a huge charge, as Panthers star Jackson Bernardo fouled out. Chapman racked up eight fouls in 11 minutes, and opened up the door for the Macs at the charity stripe. YU was down 61–57 with under 10 minutes left, but the free throws were right there for the taking.
Zevi’s follow-up made it 63–60. Then 63–62.
After three straight YU turnovers, Chapman’s Joe Jack drilled three straight threes, and ballooned Chapman’s cushion to 72-63 with 4:52 left.
Or sliced things to 72–67, but fouled out moments later. Then the free throw curse landed on the Macs. Yair split his free throws. Yoav Oselka missed both. Zevi split. Dothan Bardichev missed both. Zevi returned to the line, missed both, then split again. Even the best player on the floor felt the jitters. Meanwhile, Chapman calmly went 14/17 from the line in the second half.
Chapman sealed the victory with free throws and a transition block by Jake Heberle. A sloppy, gritty, physical D3 opener went to the California visitors, 81–77.
Free Throws. Free Throws. Free Throws:
YU went 15–27 from the line in the second half alone. That’s 12 free points left on the board in a four-point loss.
Last year, free throws were a team strength. Tonight? They were the anchor dragging YU underwater every time momentum showed up.
If YU had shot even 65–70% in the second half, they would’ve won comfortably. Clean up the free throws, and they win by 10+. Instead, they took a loss, one they never wanted but absolutely needed. The good news is that this is fixable and it would be tough to imagine the 2024-2025 Skyline leaders in FT% struggling this mightily from the stripe for the whole season.
The Three-Turnover Swing + Chapman’s Kill Shot:
With 4:52 left, the game was entirely in reach. Then YU committed three straight turnovers that were forced, rushed, sloppy and added to the Macs’ 17 total turnovers on the evening. Meanwhile, Chapman’s Joe Jack nailed three straight threes—a nine-point swing in under a minute. YU went from down 63–62 to down 72–63. That was the true knockout punch.
Stats:
Zevi Samet had 34 points, shooting 10-30 from the field
Yair Dovrat, in his Macs debut, added 13 points in 29 minutes
Yoav Oselka chipped in with a double-double for 14 points and 10 rebounds to go along with 5 assists in 34 minutes
UP NEXT:
A trip to Virginia for a tilt with #2 Randolph-Macon College Saturday night at 8:15 PM, followed by a quick turnaround to face #15 Mary Washington at 2:00 PM on Sunday.