HAFTR, Frisch tie; Migdal Ohr wins

After 32 minutes of hard-fought basketball, the HAFTR Hawks and Frisch Cougars walked off the court at Madison Square Garden — tied at 37. Both Yeshiva League contenders headed to the locker room with their heads held high after playing four quarters of a game they love to help raise nearly $20,000 to benefit Migdal Ohr, Israel's largest orphanage.

“Since it was for charity, it was actually a nice thing that there were no losers,” HAFTR head coach Joey Hoenig said. “Even though we wanted to play overtime, it was nice that everyone won, especially Migdal Ohr.”

With 50 seconds left in regulation, HAFTR’s Mikey Gindea, who led all scorers with 22 points, hit an NBA 3-pointer to tie the game at 37. Those were the final points of the contest. “We were ready to start OT and one of The Garden officials said it would have to end in a tie,” Hoenig said. “That’s never happened to me before in all my years of coaching, but it worked out because we were playing for charity.”

The Yeshiva League match-up was only the precursor to the night’s main attraction — New York Knicks taking on Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv. In front of more than 14,000 fans, the Knicks defeated Maccabi Electra Tel-Aviv, 106-91. Maccabi is the only non-American team to ever beat an NBA team on North American soil when they topped the Toronto Raptors, 105-103, in October of 2005.

All proceeds from the basketball doubleheader helped raise funds for Migdal Ohr, an organization that provides a nurturing home and outstanding education to over 6,500 neglected, at-risk, underprivileged and new immigrant children in Israel.

“It was a great game, we raised a lot of money for charity and the kids had a chance to play at MSG,” Hoenig said. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”