In the opening matchup of the Tier I quarterfinals, the Magen David Warriors took care of the Maimodenes M-Cats by a score of 68-49.
As soon as the game kicked off, it became evident why MDY was the first seeded team in the tournament, as it looked like they hadn’t skipped a beat since their championship win. The story early was their tenacious press defense, leading to countless steals and a comfortable 9 point lead at the quarter’s end.
Philip Sherr and the top-seeded MDY Warriors soundly defeated the eighth-ranked Maimonides M-Cats 68-49, advancing to the Tier I semifinals on Sunday. (Photo Credit: MacsLive)
In the second quarter, the M-Cats amped up their “quarterback pass” press breaking strategy as they launched the basketball the length of the court to Nathan Weinstock for some easy layups. Halfway through the quarter, the Warrior’s starpower looked to be too much for Maimo when they pushed the lead to 20 through the scoring of Jack Haber, but a late run before the half kept Maimo in contention, cutting it to 14.
Out of the half, both teams traded buckets and seemed to have settled into the game. Maimo looked impressive in the third quarter, and although they limited their turnovers and ran nice offensive sets, MDY’s scoring comfortably kept up with whatever the M-Cats came with.
Going into the fourth, the halftime lead remained the same, with a score of 52-38 in favor of MDY. Then, the high pressure defense and quick scoring by Mark Sardar and Moses Smeke secured the game for Magen David. In the end, the Warriors pushed their lead up to 19 and await the winner of TABC and Shalhevet.