NCAA Round of 64 Gameday Preview: Yeshiva Vs Bates

For months, this is the moment the Yeshiva Maccabees have been building toward.

The long bus rides. The brutal non-conference schedule. The painful early losses. The early mornings in the Max Stern Athletic Center, trying to figure out what this team was going to become.

It all leads here.

Friday at 1:00 PM, inside the intimate gym at Montclair State University, the Yeshiva Maccabees will take the floor against the Bates Bobcats in one of the most intriguing matchups of the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

Two programs from very different basketball worlds collide. Bates (18-8) arrives from the rugged NESCAC, where it went 5-5 before falling in the semifinals to Wesleyan, yet was battle-tested against some of the best teams in Division III. Yeshiva enters as the undefeated 19-0 Skyline champion, a group that turned a rocky 0–5 start into a 20–8 season and another conference title. The styles are different. The journeys were different. However, the stakes are the same. Win, and the season keeps going. Lose, and the ride ends.  

Bates will be the fourth NESCAC opponent the Macs have faced this season, meaning YU has already spent a good chunk of the year battling teams from one of Division III’s toughest conferences.

There were losses to Trinity, Tufts, and Wesleyan, Against Trinity, YU lost by 24 while Bates fell by 11. Against Tufts, the Macs pushed the Jumbos to overtime before losing by six, while Bates dropped a seven-point game. And against Wesleyan, YU lost by 15 while Bates fell twice, by 22 and 17. The exact numbers aren’t the point. The point is this: Yeshiva knows the level of basketball it’s about to face. That’s exactly why head coach Elliot Steinmetz scheduled the way he did for a March Madness tilt of this caliber.

Meet Bates:

The boys from Maine arrive with a balanced roster and a style built around shooting and physical play. Their offense starts in the backcourt.

Brady Coyne, assuming he’s healthy after suffering an injury in the NESCAC semifinals, is a dangerous shooter who can score from virtually anywhere on the floor, including from downtown. He’s not just a shooter either; Coyne can put the ball on the deck and attack the rim when defenders overplay him.

Sean O’Leary brings a completely different dimension. Strong and physical, he almost plays like a guard-sized post player, using his strength to bully defenders and carve out space inside.

The Bobcats also space the floor well. Sam Kravetz can knock down threes, Robinson isn’t afraid to drive or pull up even without much space, and Graham Decker is the kind of player who can suddenly get hot and blow up a scouting report.

However, the most intriguing piece of the puzzle might be their big man. Babacar Pouye, a 6-foot-7 junior, anchors the middle for Bates. Yet he’s not a traditional back-to-the-basket center. Pouye is comfortable stepping out and shooting threes, hitting around 30 percent from deep.

Against Yeshiva, that skill could become even more important. With Yoav Oselka protecting the paint and Dothan Bardichev providing additional size, getting clean looks at the rim won’t be easy. Pouye may find himself spending more time spacing the floor and pulling defenders away from the basket rather than trying to overpower them inside.

Deny Bates’ Second Chances:

Bates’ offense isn’t built purely on first-shot efficiency, but rather possession extension. The Bobcats crash the offensive glass hard and generate a significant portion of their offense from second-chance points. When their shooters miss, their forwards are already moving toward the rim. For YU, the defensive possession doesn’t end with the initial stop. It ends with the rebound.

That means Oselka and Bardichev must control the paint, but guards also need to crack down and help clean the glass. If Bates is allowed to turn one stop into two or three chances, it both inflates their scoring and disrupts YU’s ability to get into transition or early offense. When you’re watching, see how many times the Macs hold Bates to one shot per possession. If they do it effectively, the math tilts in their favor.

Dictate the Tempo Through the Motion Offense:

Bates thrives in physical, grinding games where possessions become chaotic. Their defensive identity is built on disrupting rhythm, fighting through screens, and forcing offenses into rushed decisions.

YU’s counter is patience. The Macs’ motion offense is designed to wear down defenses through continuous movement and reads. Ball reversals, back screens, and flare actions force defenders to communicate and rotate for the full 30-second shot clock. The goal isn’t just to score, rather control the game’s tempo.

If YU stays disciplined and resists settling for early contested shots, the motion offense will eventually create the mismatches it’s designed to find. When the system works, the defense begins to break down late in possessions, and that’s when open threes, cuts, and layups appear. The longer the possession, the more it favors YU. 

Win the Perimeter Efficiency Battle:

We’ve touched on how Bates has multiple perimeter shooters who can swing the game quickly, like Coyne, Kravetz, and others who are comfortable taking deep threes or shooting under pressure. However, If YU can contest without over-helping, forcing Bates into difficult perimeter looks rather than clean rhythm shots, the Bobcats’ offense becomes less efficient.

On the other side, the Macs don’t need a barrage of threes, they need high-quality looks generated through their offense. That’s where Zevi Samet’s gravity becomes huge. When defenses shade toward him, it opens space for cutters and shooters elsewhere on the floor.

YU has to trust the process over the outcome. They must constantly seek cleaner looks on offense while contesting Bates’ perimeter attempts. That efficiency gap and discipline will start to show over 40 minutes.

How To Watch:

Tip-Off is at 1:00PM from Montclair ST. You can watch the game here