On Thursday, March 23rd, the Frisch Cougars will play against the Berman Cougars for a spot in Tier I. Frisch enters the tournament as the number 4 seed while Berman is the 13 seed. Frisch is coming off a heartbreaking loss in the Yeshiva League championship game to the #3 seeded North Shore Lions earlier this week. Frisch is led by senior Alex Zakheim, who is one of the best players in the tournament. He can take over a game at any moment with his ability to shoot from beyond the arc combined with his crafty handle that allows him to get to the basket with ease. The big question mark for this team is where the rest of the production comes from game to game. Isaac Schiffman and Sammy Zelenetz are both very capable players, but aren’t necessarily going to create their own offense. Against Yeshiva League zone defenses, this isn’t usually a problem, but against a Berman team that is likely to play a pressure man to man defense, it’s extremely important that these guys find a way to contribute and help Zakheim out on the offensive end.
The Berman Cougars come into Thursday’s action a couple weeks removed from their season. They lost in a back and forth thriller against the top seeded team in their conference in the PVAC championship game. They are led by senior guards Asher Falk and Erez Epstein. These two are lightning-quick and ultra-athletic perimeter players. They will get up in your grill on defense and are always looking to get out and attack the basket in transition. Alex August is another name to look out for in this one. Don’t be fooled by the fact that he’s a freshman. This kid can play. He’s a lights out shooter who doesn’t shy away from the moment. He scored 15 fourth quarter points in their championship game. Berman will look to pull off the upset and make it to Tier I. The winner of this game will advance to the Tier I quarterfinals, while the loser will play in the Tier II qualifier on Friday.
The Battle of the Cougars is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at the MSAC. It will be broadcast on MacsLive. Tune in here.
For more Sarachek 2023 content follow MacsLive on Twitter, Instagram, and subscribe to our YouTube channel.