A Magical Season for the YU Macs

The following is my piece in the March 19, 2020 edition of the Philadelphia Jewish Link about the Yeshiva University men’s basketball team and their magical season:

A Magical Season for the YU Macs

November 9, 2019. That was the last time the Yeshiva University men’s basketball team lost a game. After dropping their season opener against Occidental College in Los Angeles, California, the Maccabees have not lost, winning 29 consecutive games and claiming ownership over the longest winning streak in NCAA Division III.

It’s been a magical season for the Macs. They rank #1 out of 416 NCAA Division III men’s basketball teams in won-lost percentage (96.7%) and field-goal percentage (53.1%). In addition, they’re ranked second in three-point field-goal percentage (40.6%), assists per game (20.2), and total assists (605). They’re also ranked fourth in scoring margin (16.3) and twentieth in scoring offense (86.7).

There have been many really good Jewish basketball players over the years who have played for YU, but there is something unique and special about this year’s team. In fact, the YU men’s basketball program has been on an upward trajectory over the past several years, and the team’s rapid rise has endeared them to their legions of fans and the American Jewish community.

“There’s been excitement around the program for a while, but obviously with the NCAA tournament, it takes it to another level,” said Bala Cynwyd resident and YU Assistant Coach Eli Katz, whose brother Dani is one of the team’s senior leaders. “Coach (Elliot) Steinmetz has done an excellent job setting a culture and setting a standard which the guys have to live up to. Our leadership has been great – Dani (Katz), Simcha (Halpert), and Gabe (Leifer) and all of the seniors – they have helped set the standard for being selfless. We always talk about chasing letters instead of chasing numbers, and the idea of not just being unselfish, but being selfless, really embodies what these guys are all about. Obviously we’re talented, but there have been many great basketball players who have come through YU. It’s the selflessness and the style of play that kind of sets these guys apart from a lot of different teams in the country.”

“The guys are super-talented, but more so than anything else, the style of play, the motion offense that we run, obviously has had success,” Katz added. “You have to be selfless; you have to be willing to pass the ball to your teammates and not worry about who scores. To everyone’s credit, they’ve been so willing to get others involved and put their own personal accolades on the back burner for the betterment of the team.”

“It’s very hard to anticipate what we’re going to do on any given possession because motion is a system – it’s not plays – and you can’t predict what’s going to happen,” Katz said while referring to the Macs’ high-powered offense. “It takes a while to learn the offense, but once you establish it and learn it and you have a few years in it, like these guys have had, and then you combine that with our talent, then you start to see the product that we have now.

“Our offense is predicated on moving and screening. It’s a beautiful thing to watch when it works, and Baruch Hashem, now that we’re several years into the system and you have seniors running it now who have run it their entire careers, it’s as beautiful as I’ve ever seen motion offense. It’s such a joy to watch.”

In addition to their impressive accomplishments as a team, a number of the Macs’ star players are at the top of several statistical categories. Senior forward Gabriel Leifer leads Division III in total rebounds (412), triple-doubles (4), and defensive rebounds per game (11.86). Leifer also ranks second in double-doubles (23), third in rebounds per game (14.2), fourth in total assists (199), and eighth in assists per game (6.9).

Sophomore guard Ryan Turell is ranked tenth in total field goals made (240), twelfth in field-goal percentage (63.7%), and fourteenth in points per game (24.0) and total points (648). Senior guard Simcha Halpert is ranked fifth in total three-point field goals made (109) and sixteenth in three-point field goals per game (3.63).

The YU players have been generating attention for their exploits on the court all season long and their stellar achievements were duly recognized when the Skyline Conference released its season end men’s basketball all-conference teams and major award winners on March 2. Turell and Leifer earned spots on the all-conference first team, with Turell also being named Skyline Player of the Year. Halpert was selected as a member of the all-conference second team, while freshman guard Ofek Reef was recognized as Skyline Rookie of the Year. YU Coach Elliot Steinmetz was named Skyline Coach of the Year, and senior guard Daniel Katz earned a spot on the Skyline Conference All-Sportsmanship team.

There were numerous other instances this season where the Macs’ stars were in the spotlight. On February 15, Turell became the only sophomore in YU history to attain the coveted 1,000-career point mark. It took the LA native just 47 games in a Macs uniform to reach 1,000 points – no one else in the history of YU has gotten there faster than Turell.

Furthermore, on March 3, Leifer was selected as U.S. Basketball Writers Association Division III National Player of the Week, the first time a YU player received the notable tribute.

The Macs won the Skyline Conference Championship in front of a capacity crowd on their home court on March 1, beating Purchase College by a score of 86-74. Leifer demonstrated why he is one of the most versatile big men in the nation, walking away with a triple-double after scoring 16 points, corralling a career-high 24 rebounds, and dishing out 12 assists, and earning the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award in the process. Turell added 29 points, while junior guard Eitan Halpert chipped in 19.

YU’s magical season continued, as the Macs, who are ranked #8 in the nation in Division III, moved on to the NCAA tournament for the second time in their history. Their first NCAA Division III tournament appearance was two years ago, when they came up short in their opening round game against York College Pennsylvania.

Their second trip to the NCAA tournament started off much differently than their 2018 appearance. YU traveled to Baltimore to take on Worcester Polytechnic Institute on March 6 in first-round action. The Macs’ trip to Maryland began with them having to make an immediate adjustment, one that had nothing to do with their game plan. The hotel they were supposed to stay at abruptly cancelled the team’s reservations due to fears concerning the Coronavirus, forcing them to make alternate lodging plans at the last minute.

“It was not a great situation and it wasn’t something that we anticipated, but, like everything else that has come up this year with our guys, we moved on and didn’t let it affect how we play on the court,” Katz said. “There are many distractions and our guys have always responded well. The mental toughness of this team is really impressive. The hotel we ended up going to was very accommodating and very nice, and we had a great time. Shabbos was great and then we went out on the court and handled business like we usually do.”

In yet another Coronavirus-related wrinkle, the NCAA announced that spectators would not be allowed in the arena for the YU first-round matchups, meaning that the Macs would play their Erev Shabbos game in an empty Goldfarb Gymnasium at Johns Hopkins University.

“Regarding the spectators, that one hurt a little bit because we knew there was going to be a large, strong, supportive Baltimore contingent that was going to come out and watch our game,” said Katz, who is a Baltimore native. “Particularly for Dani and me, it was in our hometown and we were going to have a lot of family and friends there, and to hear that we weren’t going to have spectators was obviously crushing and it was not something that we wanted to experience. But again, the mental toughness of the guys – the idea that this shouldn’t affect how we play – kicked in and we knew that we just have to get on the court and play our game. Once you get between the lines on the court, you’re just playing ball, and they did exactly that. When game time comes, we just play ball. That’s all the kids like to do.”

YU senior guard Simcha Halpert

“We would have loved to have the Jewish community come out like they always do,” Katz noted as he spoke about the Macs’ loyal fans. “The Jewish community has been incredible in terms of providing a fan base. They have been unbelievable – I think better than any other fans in the country, if I may say so. The Jewish community has been amazing, so to not have them there was crushing and we would have loved to have had them there, but when push comes to shove and we had to get on the court, the bench was amazing at providing energy and the guys fed off of each other. Once we got on the court, I don’t think it was much of an issue.”

Once the game began, all of the distractions were set aside, and the Macs got down to business. It almost seemed like YU could not miss, as they shot an incredible 60.7% from the field (34-56) and an incredible 53.6% from behind the three-point line (15-28) on their way to a convincing 102-78 win over WPI to earn their first-ever NCAA tournament victory.

Turell was unstoppable for the Macs, scoring a career-best and game-high 41 points on 13-16 shooting, including 7-9 from three-point range. The two Halpert brothers also put on a show, with Simcha scoring 20 points and Eitan adding 14 points and 8 assists.

YU sophomore guard Ryan Turell

YU took the court again on Motzei Shabbos, March 7, for their second-round game against Penn State Harrisburg. The Macs’ balanced offense was on full display, as five YU players scored in double figures en route to a 102-83 win and a trip to the Sweet 16 for a matchup with nationally ranked No. 3 Randolph-Macon College.

The Macs’ torrid shooting continued, as they shot 65.1% from the field (41-63) and 64.7% from 3-point range (11-17). YU’s defense was spectacular, as they held Penn State’s offense to just 39.5% shooting from the field (30-76).

Leifer had his fourth triple-double of the season, with 10 points, 20 rebounds, and 10 assists. Turell had a game-high 30 points on 11-15 shooting, including 3-3 from behind the three-point line. Simcha Halpert added 21 points on 8-13 shooting, including 4-6 from beyond the arc, while his brother Eitan chipped in 18 points on 7-11 shooting, including 4-7 from three-point range. In addition, Reef had 16 points and Katz put up 7 points. As he has done all season, senior guard Tyler Hod provided valuable minutes off the bench, with his leadership skills and high basketball IQ helping to provide a spark for the Macs.

As always, the YU players and coaches know that there is much more than just basketball, and they are acutely aware of the fact that they are often perceived as de facto ambassadors of the Jewish community, a responsibility that they do not take lightly, especially at a time when anti-Semitism in on the rise, particularly in the New York area.

“Coach Steinmetz has been very vocal about the issue of anti-Semitism,” said Katz. “Baruch Hashem, bli ayin hara, it hasn’t really been an issue for us this year. I know in past years we’ve had some incidents, but with us getting better and making more national headlines, people are respecting us more, so we don’t hear as much negative stuff. In basketball, particularly on the D3 level, it’s more that game respects game. They know you can play, so it’s just about playing basketball at that point.”

YU senior forward Gabriel Leifer

“We definitely understand the magnitude of these difficult situations and all we want to do is represent the Jewish people in a positive light and make a Kiddush Hashem on and off the court,” added Katz. “We want to do the best we can to educate people and show people that we embody all the right things about the Jewish people. The kids are really well behaved and behave themselves on the court. They pick everybody up, no matter if it’s our team or the other team, and we just want to make a Kiddush Hashem no matter where we are. I do believe that’s the best way to counteract all the negative feelings people may have towards the Jewish people for one silly reason or the other. Hopefully, we can help people understand what we’re really all about through our play and our actions on and off the court – that’s kind of what we’re all about.”

The members of YU men’s basketball team have certainly made a Kiddush Hashem this season. Their play on the court has been extraordinary and their middot and conduct on and off the court has been exemplary. Like the Maccabees who fought back against Antiochus and the Syrian Greeks over 2,000 years ago, overcame all odds in their defense of Judaism and the Jews, and left behind a legacy of persistence and resilience, so too these modern day Maccabees have taught us that anything is possible if you consistently exhibit a degree of effort and endurance as you chase your dreams and head towards your goal.

Unfortunately for the Macs players, coaches, family members, friends, and fans, the NCAA announced on Thursday, March 12th, that it was canceling the remaining winter and spring championships, which includes the Division III men’s basketball tournament, thereby bringing YU’s season to an abrupt halt.

“What’s sad is that there was no real ending to this movie – just a blank screen,” Coach Steinmetz said after the remainder of the tournament was canceled. “Life is bigger than basketball, always will be. The world finds weird ways to remind us of that. Hoping everyone stays healthy and safe. Thanks to all who supported us this year.”

While the end was surely unforeseen, and it left all of us wondering what could have been as YU was on the brink of playing in the Sweet 16 for the first time, one thing is certain. It has truly been a magical season for the Macs.