Who We Are

Our History

Clergy

Staff

Leadership

Our Synagogue

News & Schmooze

Upcoming Events

Member Profiles

Request Information

How to become a TI member

M'Kom Torah - A Place of Torah

Photo Gallery

First Win in Hand for TI Hoopsters.........posted Feb 25, 2007

Never say surrender to the Tikvat Israel men's basketball team.

Winless over the last couple of seasons of play in the Montgomery County synagogue league, the still-spirited TI hoopsters scored their first win of the 2007 season, 66-52, over Shaare Torah White on Sunday morning, Feb. 25, before inclement weather wiped out the rest of the synagogue's busy schedule for the day.

With a 1-7 record, TI's final regular season game will be played on March 4 against B'nai Shalom Purple at 8:30 a.m. at Magruder High School. A post-season tournament will follow.

In the win over Shaare Torah, Will Hochman and Mark Bardeski got TI out to an early lead with 3-pointers, offensive rebounds and layups, pushing TI to a 33-20 advantage at the half.

"In the second half, every time our opponents threatened a run, we responded," said Coach Warren Berger, still beaming hours after the first taste of victory. Marc Schneider hit three jump shots in a row, then Jon Urban made a few steals and layups and Mark Bardeski "put a dagger in their hopes," Berger added, by hitting a couple of threes.

Other contributers included newcomer Jeff Ermann, who hit a couple of baskets and Bruce Ginsberg, who provided an emotional boost by coming back into the game and making a baseline jumper after injuring his ankle earlier when one of Shaare Torah's big men fell on him.

"It was a very satisfying win for us," Berger said.

Earlier in the month, TI played its best basketball game up to that point in a game against the league's first-place team, unbeaten B'nai Shalom White of Olney.

"Since it was an 8:30 am game, our opponents started with only six players (we had eight). We got great contributions in the first half from Marc Schneider, David Blum and Mark Bardeski and managed to keep it close, with a margin of four points at halftime," Berger reported.

In the second half, the other team made a run and went up by 15. "Near the end of the game, they got tired -- although so did we -- and we started getting -- and making -- open shots.

Leading performers included Fred Wagner, Jon Urban, Bruce Ginsberg and Al Sandler. In the end, TI lost its seventh game of the winter in the March 11 tussle by only four points, 69-65.