The third matchup of Friday’s four-game slate in the Max Stern Athletic Center will see the #7 seed Ida Crown Aces face off against the #2 seed YULA Panthers. Both teams are coming off of 11-point wins on Thursday, with Ida Crown beating Ramaz 46-35 and YULA beating Kohelet 51-40.
Ida Crown started strong against Ramaz but only scored 2 points in the second quarter and faced a halftime deficit. The Rams then took a 1-point lead into the 4th quarter, which didn’t pan out as the Aces exploded, scoring 19 points in the quarter en route to a first-round victory and a spot in the Tier I bracket. Thursday was the Aces’ first Tier I win in 13 years.
YULA had a tough time early on against Kohelet, as the Kings held a lead late in the second quarter, but the Panthers were able to go on a quick run to take back the lead by halftime and ultimately cruise confidently to take the win.
Yula is looking to prove that they deserve the #2 seed after struggling in their first game. (Photo Credit: Annabelle Katz)
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
The Aces were led in scoring by Moshe Wiesenberg and Avi Okner, each scoring 12 points to secure the win. They’ll be looking to put up big numbers against YULA as they seek their second straight Tier I victory. Look for Jakob Wortman to also get involved, as he scored 9 points and has been a big factor for the Aces the past few years.
YULA will be looking to play a much stronger game after they struggled to gain consistency against a smaller Kohelet lineup. The Panthers played strong defensively, but they’re going to need to find ways to score against the much more physical Ida Crown squad. Yishai Rosenblatt is the one to watch for YULA, and his team will be relying on him to have another great game on Friday.