Macs Win Skyline Conference Championship, Defeating Farmingdale

The Yeshiva University Maccabees secured their first Skyline Conference title since 2022, defeating their longtime rival, the Farmingdale State Rams, 81-78 in the championship game on March 2.

The victory comes a year after the Macs lost to Farmingdale in the 2023 Skyline Championship, a loss that remained a focus throughout the season, according to guard Max Zakheim (SSSB ‘25). 

“When we lost here [last year], we put up signs in the locker room: ‘In 365 days we’re coming back here,’” Zakheim explained in a postgame interview with MacsLive. “Our group chat name has been, ‘Get rings. Cut nets.’ So it’s just been things we’ve been talking about the entire year.”

The Macs kept the game close early, but Farmingdale pulled away late in the first half with a 13-0 run and entered halftime with a 49-35 lead.

Down 14 points, Zevi Samet (YC ‘26), the Macs’ shooting guard who was named MVP of the Skyline Conference Tournament, told The Commentator the halftime message in the Macs locker room was to “stay positive, keep up the energy, and get stops to come back and win.”

Samet opened the second half with a three-pointer, cutting the Rams’ lead to eleven.

The Macs continued to shrink the deficit — going on several runs and making multiple stops — to turn it into a one score game.

With 23 seconds remaining, Farmingdale led the Macs 78-76. Samet maneuvered down the court and threw up an off-balance fall-away from beyond the three point line, putting the Macs in the lead, 79-78. 

“Definitely one of, if not, the biggest shots in program history,” Yosef Silver of MacsLive told The Commentator.

In an attempt to get the ball back, Farmingdale forced a foul on Or Sundjyvsky (SSSB ‘26) who had been averaging 72% in his free throw attempts during the season. Sundjyvsky scored the two points, cementing the Macs lead and making the score 81-78.

Down by three with less than five seconds to go, Farmingdale inbounded the ball only for it to be intercepted by Effy Freundlich (SSSB ‘25). As the clock ran out, Freundlich tossed the ball into the air to secure the win for the Macs. 

Samet, who led the Macs with 37 points, credits the victory to his faith. “Emunah and bitachon win championships,” he told The Commentator.

Besides Samet, three other players scored in the double digits. Zakheim scored 13 points, while Roy Itcovichi (YC ‘26) and Sundjyvsky scored 10 points each.

With the victory, YU earned a spot in the NCAA Division III Tournament. The Macs ultimately lost to Tufts University on March 7 in Medford, Mass., with a score of 83-66. With the result, they closed out their season with a total of 18 wins and 11 losses. 

Photo caption: MVP Zevi Samet at the Skyline Conference Championship game 

Photo credit: YU Athletics