By John Brundred
For The Diamondback
An eruption of noise filled Reckord Armory on Sunday as fans — including Jewish reggae singer-songwriter Matisyahu — cheered for more than 400 Jewish athletes at the weekend-long National Hillel Basketball Tournament.
Hundreds of people came together to watch more than 55 teams to compete for the men’s and women’s championships in the campus’s sixth annual event, hosted by Maryland Hillel.
“Sport is a fantastic unifier, but the weekend is about so much more than basketball,” said Jonathan Leader, an event sponsor and New York-based philanthropist. “It is a social, educational and community-building weekend.”
This year’s tournament united hundreds of college athletes from more than 30 schools while hosting about 2,000 attendees from all over the country, according to the tournament program.
Emory University’s women’s team defeated Yeshiva University’s Stern College in the women’s final, while Yeshiva’s Ammar men’s team defeated George Washington University in the men’s final.
“The highlight of the tournament was winning the championship, but a close second was the Shabbat dinner on Friday night,” Emory University junior Simee Rosner said.
With each passing year, the tournament continues to grow, Leader said. He said the event gains more of a sense of professionalism over time — for instance, this year’s tournament has scoreboards and officials to keep track of players’ stats.
The students who run this event have made it into an official basketball tournament, Leader said. One of those students, tournament chairman Joseph Tuchman, began planning this year’s event in September.
“The tournament is run completely independently by 18 students with a $100,000 budget and the support of dozens of sponsors,” said Tuchman, a senior finance major. “From graphic design to hospitality, each student is in charge of one area of the event, and the really cool thing is every single decision is made by students.”
Those decisions resulted in a competition that was both fierce and friendly. The athletes consistently applauded opposing teams, and winning was not the only objective. Elijah Ackerman, a sophomore at Muhlenberg College, said he just came to the event to have fun.
The tournament was created out of necessity, Tuchman said. There are competitions for Jewish basketball teams on the high school level, but college-level teams had few options before this one.
Asher Fishman, a freshman at Rockland Community College in New York, said he was thankful for the tournament’s effort to bring so many schools together.
“The tournament is like a reunion for me,” Fishman said. “I played with and against many of the athletes here growing up, and it is great to see them all again. I cannot wait for next year, and hopefully my team will be playing for the Kiddush Cup.”
Freshman Ben Bryer, who is enrolled in letters and sciences, played for one of this university’s teams in the tournament this year.
“These guys are really good,” he said. “A lot of these kids play for their school’s varsity teams as well — these are probably some of the best Jewish basketball players in the country.”
The tournament wrapped up Sunday with a performance from Matisyahu and acoustic hip-hop artist Nadim Azzam in Stamp Student Union’s Grand Ballroom.
