For senior and captain Cyrus Blumenthal, one achievement had eluded him and the boys varsity basketball team since freshman year: a win over archrival Melvin J. Berman Hebrew Academy. That changed on Dec. 9, when the JDS Lions beat the Cougars 59-50.
With a 8-2 winning record, Blumenthal said that the team had a confidence boost after winning by 49 points in their most recent game. However, he said they were expecting a difficult game.
“I had confidence, but my expectations were low,” Blumenthal said. “But obviously, I believed in our team, and it was a huge win for us.”
Senior and captain Leo Steindecker opened the game with a two-pointer, followed by a three-point shot by junior Dylan Shank. Within a couple of minutes, the Cougars tied the score 5-5. However, with another basket by Shank, the Lions took a lead that they didn’t relinquish for the rest of the game. The first quarter ended with a score of 12-7 Lions.
The second quarter opened with a three-pointer by Berman followed by a two-pointer by Shank and three-pointers by senior Jesse Fisher and sophomore Theo Pearlman. Head coach Ryan Eskow (‘08) said that the team’s work on maintaining consistency and control throughout the game has paid off allowing them to stay focused despite the noisy fans. The first half ended with the Lions up 26-19.
“We played very composed,” Eskow said. “We didn’t let the outside rattle us. We were a veteran team, and we executed.”
The Lions continued to run up the score during the third quarter. Blumenthal opened the quarter with a two-pointer and went on to sink a trio of three-pointers. Shank and senior Caden Mont also scored four points each.
At one point, there was an uninterrupted run when both the Lions and the Cougars went back and forth, scoring several points. Each team also had several rebounds during the third quarter. Mont, Cyrus, Shank and senior Jakob Lipsky all got defensive rebounds off the backboard when Berman players missed. The quarter ended with a score of 45-30.
“The whole team handled the pressure really well, took great shots, finished what they needed to and played great overall,” Shank said. “…We came out hard and hit a few straight shots that pushed the lead out.”
During the fourth quarter, Berman pushed to close the gap and scored 20 more points. With extensive back and forth and fouls by both teams (which resulted in bonus free throws for the Lions) the fourth quarter had the most points scored. With only a couple seconds left on the clock, Shank dribbled the ball until the buzzer went off to proclaim their victory. Students rushed the court shortly after.
Eskow said that the team played well, but needs to work on keeping up their momentum at the end of games.
“I don’t think we finished around the hoop as well as we could have,” Eskow said. “But, overall, we did what we needed to do. You’re never going to have a perfect game 100%. We need to finish better.”
According to Blumenthal, it was very meaningful to finally beat Berman during his final season. Now with a 9-2 record on the season, he said he is looking forward to finishing the rest of the season strong. He credited the win against Berman to practice and a supportive team culture.
“I thought we were very selfless,” Blumenthal said. “People only took the shots that they needed, made the plays that they needed. Everyone was just playing for each other, battling for each other. And I think if we play like that, no one can really beat us.”
