Macs Purchase Finals Berth after Win over Panthers
- Marvin Azrak
- 23 hours ago
- 3 min read
For eight minutes Friday afternoon, it appeared the Purchase Panthers would shock the D3 Hoops world, and the power of an upset had purchased the Macs' perfect Skyline season. Then the YU seniors on their final ride decided the ride wasn’t ending here. The top-seeded and conference-undefeated 18-0 Yeshiva Maccabees weathered an early 12–0 Panthers surge before detonating a 25–7 second-half surge, pulling away for an 86–71 victory at the Max Stern Athletic Center to advance to the Skyline Championship on Sunday afternoon for the third straight year. To be the champs, you’ve got to knock them out. The Panthers didn’t, and YU is a win away from repeating.
How It Happened:
Purchase opened with a three, and immediately established pace and physicality.
Roy Itcovich answered back as the Macs showed patience against tight-man defense.
The Panthers crashed the glass and fueled transition off YU turnovers. A 12–0 spurt flips it to 25–19 Purchase midway through the half.
Late rotations + poor spacing hurt YU, and Maurice Western’s three stretched it to 30–22.
Zevi Samet & Max Zakheim responded late in the half, trimming the deficit before halftime. Purchase leads 33–31 at the break.
Zakheim opened the half with a hoop-and-harm to give YU a 36–33 lead.
Purchase shifted to gap zone coverage, but the Macs attack it inside-out instead of settling.
Zakheim’s “ Red Rocket” three made it 46–40, sparking a full momentum swing.
Yoav Oselka’s backwards hoop-and-harm pushed the lead to 50–41.
YU finished off a 25–7 run, flipping a two-point halftime deficit into a 56–41 cushion with 12:30 left.
Purchase started their bread & butter by forcing threes and they stopped falling, while the transition rhythm disappeared.
Bardichev drilled a three making it 67-57 and creating doubts in Panthers fans minds.
Samet threaded a tight-window assist to Itcovich, making it 74–59, eliciting a Macs Nation celebration.
A Yair Dovrat baseline drive sealed it, and the Macs closed strong for an 86–71 win.
Second-Half Defensive Efficiency:
Purchase’s offense is built on volume threes and transition rhythm. In the first half, they generated clean looks off turnovers and offensive rebounds. In the second half, YU forced them into late-clock, contested attempts. The Panthers stopped getting paint-touch kickouts and started taking bailout shots. The drop in efficiency wasn’t random; it was structural. YU shrunk driving lanes, rotated earlier, and eliminated clean catch-and-shoot rhythm.
The Seniors Controlled the Math:
The preview was about possession margin and three-point variance. After halftime, YU won both. They limited second chances, forced Purchase into rushed perimeter looks, and stopped giving away live-ball turnovers. Meanwhile, they attacked the paint and earned their points. When Samet and Zakheim steadied the game, the volatility disappeared — and that favored the champs.
They Imposed Identity in the Second Half:
Against Purchase’s gap coverage and physical man defense, Yeshiva refused to settle. Instead of drifting into early-clock threes or forcing contested perimeter looks, the Macs prioritized paint touches. They attacked off the bounce, entered the ball inside, and forced the Panthers to collapse. That interior pressure produced efficient outcomes — hoop-and-harm finishes from Zakheim and Oselka, controlled kick-out threes when help rotated too far, and improved offensive rebounding positioning because shots came from the paint rather than long rebounds off the arc.
Purchase wanted chaos: pace, rhythm threes, broken-floor offense. YU forced structure. They attacked the gap zone inside-out, got paint touches, and made the Panthers guard through full possessions. Once the Macs built separation 56–41 with 12:30 left, the visitors were reduced to chucking. From there, it was discipline, poise, and championship composure.
The first half was shaky. The second half was identity. And that’s why Yeshiva is playing for another banner on Sunday.
Up Next:
The Macs will host Farmingdale State on Skyline Championship Sunday at the MSAC! Tip-Off is at 2:00PM. You can watch on https://www.macslive.com/
Comments