Shabbat becomes factor in series

IF New York-based Yeshiva University’s men’s basketball team had won its game last Saturday night, it would have gone into the post-season ranked number one in its division yet again. But it didn’t even get to play. That’s because the Maccabees’ game against the Farmingdale State College Rams was cancelled after its scheduled tip-off time, with Yeshiva’s athletic director citing tight timing after Shabbat as the reason. In a statement issued late Saturday, the athletic director, Greg Fox, said a promise to allow “adequate warmup time” after the Maccabees team travelled from its home in Washington Heights to Farmingdale State’s Long Island campus had been broken. “In the interest of safety, we could not allow our student athletes to proceed,” Fox said. The stakes of the game were high, as the winner would get top ranking and would get to play all of the post-season games at home. Yeshiva ended up being ranked third, heading into their post-season games. At the time of going to print, Yeshiva Uni were due to play St. Joseph’s Long Island in the quarter-finals. The championship final is also scheduled for a Saturday night (February 25). Organisers have promised that accommodations will be made for teams and players for religious observances.

Credit AJN