‘The real winner’

‘The real winner’

The Yeshiva Varsity Basketball League Season is ending this week. This area has two amazing teams competing for bragging rights as the best yeshiva team in the area.

On Feb. 9, the MTA Lions (11 wins, 1 loss) were playing the undefeated Frisch Cougars. MTA’s only loss this season was in a well-played game at Yeshiva University that ended in a 59-51 win for Frisch. You can only imagine the pressure on each team to win. For Frisch, a win would mean they would, in all likelihood, finish the regular season undefeated. For MTA, this was a chance to redeem themselves and finish the season tied with Frisch in second place overall.

Right from the first whistle on, it was clear that this was going to be a great game. Both teams played hard, and it soon became apparent that it was anyone’s game. After being down by 12 points, MTA fought back, and at the half, the score was 28-27 Lions. Then in the beginning of the third quarter, I witnessed the greatest play I had ever seen in high school sports: my son, Zev, plays center, and being 6 feet 5 inches, he had an advantage over Frisch’s center. Anyway, after a drive by MTA, Zev and Frisch’s center, David Borghard, collided, and Zev’s eyeglasses were thrown to the ground. It was now Frisch’s ball, and with Zev looking frantically for his glasses, Frisch had a clear advantage. It was like a power play in basketball.

To my astonishment, David Borghard didn’t bolt down the court; instead he picked up Zev’s glasses, and with a smile on his face that I could see across the court, he handed Zev his glasses! What a play!

The game continued, and MTA squeaked out a 59-53 victory. But in my opinion, the real winner was David Borghard. He demonstrated a play that was never taught in the rule books: He showed us that winning is not always determined by the numbers on the score board, but how you play the game.

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