Coach Jonathan Halpert expressed two worries at practice on Monday, one day before his team was to face the Stevens Tech Ducks in the first round of the Skyline Conference tournament. He was afraid that his team would tighten up in the raucous playoff atmosphere of the Max Stern Athletic Center, and, if they overcame the initial nerves, that they would play too conservatively and squander a big lead, as teams often do when the playoffs begin.

The Macs quelled both his fears with an outstanding performance Tuesday night, winning handily, 62-53.

After falling behind 8-5 with 11:04 to go in the first half, Halpert called a timeout and inserted his son, Rafi, and Alex Lapidus (9 points) into the lineup. The two rookies immediately changed the face of the game, each one scoring on alternating possessions. Halpert began by tying the game with a three-pointer from the right wing, and after Lapidus scored on an acrobatic drive to his left, Halpert hit another three-pointer from the same spot. Lapidus followed with another terrific move, this time driving to his right, and hit the off-balance shot while drawing a foul. He converted the conventional three-point play to give the Macs a 16-8 lead on a 11-0 run that took only 3 minutes.

Halpert would continue his hot shooting, scoring five more points in the next few minutes. He would not score again the rest of the way, finishing with 11 points, but his impact would continue to be felt. For the second game in a row, Halpert's play motivated the rest of the team.

A player who was tentative for most of the season, only attempting 15 three-pointers all year, Halpert tied the game Saturday night at Mt. St. Vincent on a buzzer-beating shot from behind the arc. That night, his dramatic shot inspired his teammates to a dominant overtime. His affect Tuesday night was similar. The Macs began to execute seamlessly, with Jack Yulzary (5 points, 7 assists) and Eli Hami (11 points, 3 assists) running the break with ease, and Yossy Gev (14 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocked-shots) finding a cutting Matt Rosenblatt (10 points, 5 rebounds) on several occasions in half-court offensive sets.

The Macs' defense was just as impressive. Playing a 1-3-1 defense with a guard down low, the Macs held Stevens Tech to just 39% shooting on the night. Istvan Nyilas, who scored 19 points last week against the Macs en route to being named Skyline Conference player-of-the-week, was held to a mere 2 points.

With a 29-15 lead heading into the locker room at halftime, the only question remaining was if the Macs could play with a big lead. Rosenblatt and Hami answered that straight away, scoring the first two baskets of the second half, sending the Macs on their way to a 23-point lead. That lead would remain steady until the final 1:30, when the Ducks scored on four three-point plays to draw the score close.

Notes: The Manhattanville Valiants defeated the St. Joseph's Golden Eagles Tuesday, so the Macs will travel to Purchase, NY on Thursday. The two teams split the season series this year, 1-1, with each team winning the game at their home court. The game at Manhattanville was played on November 29, with the Macs losing by 5, 72-67. Yossy Gev was injured for that game, and Alex Lapidus and Zev Hendeles had yet to establish their roles on the team. The Macs won the game at YU on February 3 by 25 points, 95-70…There will be fan busses from Yeshiva for the Manhattanville game. There is a signup sheet outside the athletic office to assess interest. The department will add more busses if there is a demand. Students are advised that Manhattanville is changing $3.00 for admission to the game.