Storm Surge: HANC Rains Threes, beats JEC in Sarachek play-in
- Marvin Azrak
- 16 minutes ago
- 3 min read
I’ll say it straight—I got this one completely wrong. I thought JEC Thunder would control the tempo of this play-in tilt, settle things down, and grind out a win. Instead, the HANC Hurricanes flipped things upside down. They turned the game into a fast paced game, alongside a barrage of three-pointers, en route to a 70-61 win, remaining alive and earning the #17 seed in the Sarachek tournament.
How It Happened:
From the opening minutes, this wasn’t a half-court game. It was fast, loose, and sloppy, which played right into the Hurricanes' hands.
Yossi Davidowits caught fire early and never cooled off. He hit an early three to set the tone and finished with 7 total threes, highlighting his 23 points. Every time JEC threatened, he answered.
HANC’s 2–3 zone disrupted everything. JEC struggled to get clean interior touches. Possessions turned into rushed shots, turnovers, or late-clock decisions.
JEC led 28–27 at the break on a late bucket by Michael Schnur, who dropped 21, but defensively they were already in trouble—getting blown by and over-helping, which led to open kick-outs.
Early in the third, a JEC turnover led to a Davidowits corner three for a 33-31 HANC lead.
A sloppy stretch late in the third favored HANC, and as the game got messier, HANC got more comfortable. That’s where momentum started shifting.
The Hurricanes pushed their lead to 46–39, forcing JEC to chase the game rather than control it.
JEC tied the game late when Aharon Rozehzadeh converted an and-one to make it 51–51 with under 5 minutes left. He finished the game with 27 points.
Yet this was the Davidowits show as the man of the night hit back-to-back threes, and suddenly HANC’s lead was 62–53.
Elijah Friedman, who added 20, and Ruby Tillis, who added 15, closed it out with transition buckets, and smart finishes and free throws sealed the Hurricanes' spot in Tier II qualifying.
HANC imposed its identity:
This game was never played on JEC’s terms. JEC needed control, structure, half-court execution, touches inside, and a slower pace where their size and decision-making could show. Instead, HANC turned it into a track meet almost immediately. The game became fast paced and once it got there, it stayed there. This forced JEC’s possessions to be rushed, while entry passes got tougher, and instead of dictating where shots came from, they were just trying to survive each trip down.
Yossi Davidowits had the night of his life:
Seven threes isn’t just a hot night, it completely reshapes how a game is played. Dribbble drives collapsed the defense, help rotations came late, and that led to clean kick-outs and rhythm looks. Once he saw a couple go in, every defensive mistake loomed larger.
JEC tried to adjust, but they were always a step behind. And every time JEC made a push, Davidowits had an answer. JEC expected to win this game inside, with efficiency and structure. Instead, HANC won it from the perimeter with high percentage shots that came in rhythm and at the biggest moments.
The final five minutes exposed the difference in execution:
With about four and a half minutes left, the game was tied at 51–51.
HANC looked decisive. They attacked early in possessions, trusted their spacing, and played with confidence. Their offense was playing with purpose and when they got good looks, they converted, and when they got to the line, they finished the job.
JEC, on the other hand, looked like a team still trying to regain control of a game that had already slipped away. Their possessions became longer, tougher, and more reactive. They weren’t generating the same quality looks, and defensively, they couldn’t string together enough stops to slow the momentum.
The defining sequence was back-to-back daggers threes from Davidowits that stretched a tie game into a multi-possession lead, to close out the contest.
HANC is now the #17 seed and awaits to face the loser of the #1 DRS vs #16 HA Montreal game in the Tier II qualifier.