1st Timer’s Shaare Torah STARS head to Tier I Championship, defeat TABC STORM 61-54!

In the Tier I semi-finals, the TABC Storm played the Shaarei Torah Stars for an appearance in the Tier I Championship game on Sunday. Everyone knew it was going to be an exciting, high scoring, fast paced game, but no one knew to what extent. The game proved that statement true, as it was close until the final buzzer. Shaarei Torah’s Jackie Haber and Freddy Swaid continued their dominance combining for 14 of their team’s 18 points in the first quarter. They trailed by one, however, going into the second as all five starters for the Storm showed up on the board early.

The Stars pulled ahead early in the second quarter, but it seemed that no matter what they did, the Storm were able to match them on the other end. Whenever the Stars started to pull ahead, TABC’s Yoni Mann or Zevi Samet were able to make a big time play to keep the Storm in the game. Late in the 2nd quarter, Storm’s star, Yoni Mann, got in early foul trouble committing his 3rd foul and had to come out of the game. The Stars seemed to have control of the game. When they wanted to go fast, they went fast. When they wanted to slow it down, they slowed it down. They finished the half, leading 33-30.

The Stars opened up the second half, continuing their dominance, as Freddy Swaid hit a deep three. They began to pull away and extended their lead to 8. In the third quarter, the Storm seemed to have no answers. Then, Yoni Mann drove to the basket and drew Freddy Swaid’s third foul, forcing him to play less aggressive. It sparked a 5-0 scoring run for the Storm, but they still trailed. They continued to control the clock and boasted a 7 point lead going into the final quarter.

The Stars opened up the fourth quarter on fire, going on a 7-2 scoring run and brought them to a 12 point lead. TABC’s Zevi Samet was determined to bring his team back into the game, but the Stars continued to get stops and convert on the other end. With three and a half minutes left in the game, Freddy Swaid committed his fourth foul, but the Stars decided to keep him in the game. The Storm were down seven with two minutes left, but they never quit, and they continued to chip into the Stars’ lead. Then, disaster struck for the Storm as Yoni Mann missed a big layup. Come on, Mann. Then, he committed his fifth and final foul on Freddy Swaid. He finished off the Storm, hitting one of two free throws. Hammer, nail, coffin, this baby is over. The Stars are headed to the Tier I Championship game on Sunday. The high scorer for the Storm was Zevi Samet with 14. The high scorer for the Stars was Freddy Swaid with 27 points. He is averaging 28 points per game in the tournament and looks to continue his hot streak into Championship Sunday.

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