Lieberman will join other prominent Jewish Americans at a reception with President Obama and his family on May 27.

“This is a tremendous opportunity for me and I look forward to visiting the White House and President Obama,” Lieberman commented. “To share this experience with a fellow basketball lover like President Obama makes it even more exciting for me. My heritage is very important to me and I never want to forget from where I came.”

President Obama has continued the tradition President George W. Bush started of proclaiming May as Jewish American Heritage Month. Jewish Americans from all walks of life were invited to the reception, including members of Congress, business leaders, military veterans and astronauts.

“The Jewish American story is an essential chapter of the American narrative,” the President said in a press release. “As leaders in every facet of American life – from athletics, entertainment and the arts to academia, business, government and our armed forces – Jewish Americans have shaped our Nation and helped steer the course of our history.”

Lieberman, a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, twice made Olympic teams, winning a silver medal as an 18-year-old in 1976. In 1980, she withdrew from the Olympic squad in support President Jimmy Carter’s boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.

While playing for Old Dominion University between her two Olympic stints, Lieberman twice won the Wade Trophy, awarded annually to the national player of the year in college women’s basketball.

Contact: Alan Freedman
631-462-9800 ext.119

NATIONAL JEWISH SPORTS HALL OF FAME AND MUSEUM INDUCTION CEREMONY SLATED FOR APRIL 18, 2010

Commack, NY- Seven distinguished people in the world of sports will be inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame Museum at the 18th annual induction ceremony on April 18, 2010 at 10:30am at The Suffolk Y Jewish Community Center, 74 Hauppauge Road, Commack, NY. For tickets or additional information contact Alan Freedman at (631)462-9800, ext. 119.

The award came after a very successful season for Coach Pearl and the Volunteers. Tennessee finished 25-8 in regular season play with key victories over #1 Kansas and #2 Kentucky. This year’s campagin was the first time since the 1976-77 season that the Vols had defeated two top-five teams.

The Vols’ postseason performance was even more impressive. After receiving a #6 seed, Bruce Pearl led Tennessee to the elite 8 of the NCAA tournament. Tennessee captured notable victories over #2 seed Ohio State, #10 seed Ohio and #11 seed San Diego State before being narrowly defeated by Michigan State for a bid to the Final 4. This marked the first time in the program’s history that they had ever reached a regional final in the NCAA tournament.

Bruce Pearl receives the award over other four other finalists that included: Seth Greenberg (Virigina Tech University), Josh Pastner (University of Memphis), Keith Dambrot (Akron University), and Brad Greenberg (Radford University).

Coach Pearl was the only coach among the finalists to be awarded a bid to the 2010 NCAA tournament.

Three of the finalists, Josh Pastner (Memphis), Keith Dambrot (Akron) and Brad Greenberg (Radford), lead their teams to second place conference finishes during the regular season. Two of the finalists, Bruce Pearl (Tennessee) and Seth Greenberg (Virginia Tech) coached their teams to third place regular season finishes in the SEC and ACC respectively.

Bruce Pearl lead the Tennessee Vols to a 25-8 regular season record, punctuated by wins against #1 Kansas and #2 Kentucky, the first time since the 1976-77 season Tennessee has defeated two top-five teams in the same season. The Vols received a #6 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Seth Greenberg guided the Virginia Tech Hokies to their best record (23-8) under his tenure. Highlight wins included: North Carolina, Georgia Tech, and Wake Forest and out of conference opponents Iowa, Penn State and Georgia. The Hokies received a #1 seed to the NIT.

Josh Pastner, in his first year as head coach of the Memphis Tigers, directed the team with a depleted roster to a 23-9 overall record in Conference USA and a 2nd place finish. The Tigers garnered a #3 seed in the NIT.

Keith Dambrot lead the Akron Zips to a 24-10 record in the Middle American Conference, which was highlighted by 2nd place regular season conference finish and a run to the MAC title game. The Zips received a bid to the 2010 College Basketball Invitational (CBI).

Brad Greenberg, in his 3rd season at Radford, coached the Highlanders to a 19-12 overall record in the Big South. The season was highlighted by wins against league foe and conference champion Coastal Carolina and a season sweep of Big South NCAA tournament representative Winthrop.

The Red Auerbach Award is given annually to the nation’s top Jewish college coach, as voted on by the members of the Jewish Coaches Association (JCA). The winner will be presented with the award at the Final Four in Indianapolis.

In 2010 the Jewish Coaches Association named its college coach of the year award after Red Auerbach, the coaching legend who won 938 games (a record at his retirement) and nine National Basketball Association (NBA) championships as a coach. As general manager and team president of the Celtics, he won an additional seven NBA titles, for a grand total of 16 in a span of 29 years, making him one of the most successful team officials ever in the history of professional sports.

2010 RED AUERBACH AWARD FINALISTS

Bruce Pearl - University of Tennessee
Seth Greenberg - Virigina Tech University
Josh Pastner - University of Memphis
Keith Dambrot - Akron University
Brad Greenberg - Radford University

All are welcome!

Shapiro’s Downtown
808 S Meridian St
Indianapolis, IN 46225
317.631.4041

In the NCAA Tournament:

Tennessee:

Bruce Pearl, Head Coach

USA Open Maccabiah ’09 (Head Coach)

Steven Pearl – 27 games, 10.7 min, 1. 4 pts, 1. 3 rebounds

USA Open Maccabiah ’09

Villanova:

Jason Donnelly: Assistant Coach

UC Santa Barbara:

Jordan Weiner — started 10 games, 14.3 minutes, 3.0 pts

Siena:

Adam Chaskin, Assistant Coach

Greater Washington Maccabi; USA Open Maccabiah ‘97

Duke:

Jon Scheyer — started all 34 games, 36.6 min, 18.6 pts, 3.6 reb, 1^st team all ACC, 2^nd team Sporting News All American

Syracuse:

Bernie Fine: Associate Head Coach

USA Open Maccabiah ’93 (Head Coach)

Pitt:

Jordan Marks: Assistant Video Coordinator

USA Youth Maccabiah ’09

Temple:

Carmel Bouchman

Florida:

Larry Shyatt: Associate Head Coach

Rod Tishman

California:

Gregg Gottlieb: Assistant Coach

Cornell:

Jon Jaques: 6.9 pts, 2.6 reb

Los Angeles Maccabi

Eitan Chemerinski

Greater Washington (DC) Maccabi

************************************************************

Here is news on Jewish College Players who had impact years:

Bryan Cohen, Bucknell

Philly Maccabi; USA Juniors Maccabiah ’05; USA Open Maccabiah ’09.

A sophomore, Bryan was named the 2010 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year. He started 28 of 31 games, averaged 29.5 minutes, 8.8 pts and 3.4 rebounds.

Jake Cohen, Davidson

Philly Maccabi 2007

A freshman, Jake was named the 2010 Media Southern Conference Rookie of the Year. He started 24 of 31 games, played 22.7 minutes, led Davidson in scoring with 13.3 pts, and was 2^nd in rebounding with 5.1 boards.

Derek Glasser, Arizona State

Los Angeles Maccabi

Glasser started 30 of 32 games, played 32. 8 minutes, scored 10.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists

Alex Rubin, Illinois State

St Paul Maccabi; USA Juniors Maccabiah ‘05

Alex started 30 of 32 games, averaged 27 minutes, 5.0 pts & 1.5 rebounds

Zach Rosen, Pennsylvania

Clifton (NJ) Maccabi; USA Open Maccabiah ’09

Zach was named 1^st team all Ivy and led the Ivy league in scoring. He started 27 of 28 games, played 37.1 minutes, scored 17.7 pts, 3.3 rebounds and registered 124 assists.

Michael Gruner, Lafayette

Greater Washington (DC) Maccabi; USA Youth Maccabiah ’05

Michael started all 32 games, played 24.9 minutes and averaged 7.0 points and 2.7 rebounds

Jared Mintz, Lafayette

Toronto Maccabi; Maccabi Canada Juniors ’05 and Youth ’07.

Jared started 29 of 31 games, played 27.7 minutes and led the team in scoring with 14.1 points and 5.7 rebounds.

Brett Harvey, Loyola (Md)

USA Open Maccabiah ’09

Brett started 22 of 27 games, played 29.5 minutes and led the team in scoring with 12.7 points and 2.7 rebounds.

Mitchell Kates, MIT

Monmouth Maccabi; USA Juniors Maccabiah ‘05

Mitchell was the New England Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year. He started all 27 games, played 33.0 minutes, scored 13.2 points and tallied 112 assists.

Travis Warech, Saint Michael’s

MetroWest Maccabi; USA Juniors Maccabi (Chile ’07); USA Youth Maccabiah ‘09

Travis was named to the Northeast-10 Conference all rookie team. Stared all 25 games, played 33.2 minutes and led the team in scoring with 16.8 points and 4.4 rebounds.

Richie Polan, NYU

Los Angeles Maccabi; USA Juniors Maccabiah ‘05

Richie played 21.7 minutes, averaged 9.2 points and led the team in rebounding with 7.4 per game.

FYI: Bryan Cohen, Alex Rubin, Mitchell Kates and Richie Polan all were members of the 2005 USA Junior Maccabiah team.

However, with the recent departure of Calipari to the University of Kentucky, many in the college basketball world believe that the match-up has lost much of its luster. This year, a loaded Tennessee squad faces off against rookie Memphis head coach Josh Pastner, whose young team has been largely untested other than an early season match up against #1 Kansas. Yet what the casual fan may fail to realize is that the Tennessee vs. Memphis match-up has taken on an entirely new dynamic that transcends the game itself; both teams’ coaches are of the Jewish faith.

No longer will the match-up be just a simple game of basketball, but rather a testament to how far American culture has progressed in the last quarter century.

Jews in the game of basketball have had remarkable (if often unrecognized) success.  Although Jews make up less than 2% of America’s population, almost a third of NBA franchise owners (including Mark Cuban and Micky Arison) are Jewish.  The greatest coach in the history of the game, Red Auerbach, along with the NBA’s long time commissioner, David Stern, are both Jews.  Nevertheless, for all the success that Jews have had on the professional levels of the game, that success has not been as nearly pronounced in the college level. Today, only 10 of some 341 Division I head coaches are of the Jewish faith.  The numbers amongst the ranks of assistants are equally comparable.

That is what makes Josh Pastner’s ascendancy into the college basketball realm even more significant. Pastner, at the ripe age of 32, has been seen as ray of hope not only for the Memphis basketball program, but for the Jewish population and the coaching profession as a whole. Not only is Josh one of the youngest coaches on the Division I level, but he is by far the youngest head coach of a major program in recent history. He joins Bruce Pearl and Virginia Tech’s Seth Greenberg, as only the 3^rd Jewish head coach of a major college basketball team.  Through tremendous work ethic, an exceedingly charming personality, and an unyielding passion for the game, he has been able to tread new ground in an archaic profession.

Pastner not only carries the flag of his faith, but that of his generation too.

More significant is the fact that the two major universities in Tennessee, a state known for its long history of anti-semitism and racist undertones, have Jews leading their basketball teams.  No longer will the Volunteers and Tigers simply battle for bragging rights; they will silently become witness to a progress that many thought unimaginable only a few decades ago. Pastner and Pearl are proof that one’s religion, or race for that matter, makes no difference in the success one is capable of achieving. If anything, Pastner himself proves that the teachings he has learned from his religion; hard work, dedication, loyalty and passion, are the foundations for what is needed to succeed in the coaching profession at a young age.

The battle for the Volunteer state will, for the foreseeable future, have far more meaning to it than a simple basketball game. It will evidence that even in a world as competitive as sports, people have begun to put aside their differences in the pursuit of a common success.

Hardwood glory will never have meant so much to so many, and for that we should all be grateful.

The Jewish Coaches Association took a big step in its development today as they unveiled the first design of the association’s logo. The first official logo design in the JCAs brief history looks to reflect the mission, values and services that meet the needs of coaches involved with the association.

The logo is an uppercase version of the JCA letters in a light blue coloring with an ‘A’ that is sketched to intertwine with the Jewish Star of David and the association’s full name written underneath the design. The new logo draws strong inspiration from the Israeli flag and is effectively animated for its use throughout various media platforms.

“Developing our overall brand is of upmost importance to the association. We want our members and constituents to connect with what our brand and organization stands for - loyalty, passion, commitment and a value-rich culture. By combining both a contemporary design with one that gives a clear nod to our heritage, we help create an important visual foundation for the growth of the organization,” said Jason Belzer, Executive Director of the JCA.

The new logo makes a bold statement about the strengths of the association as a non-profit group and will now become one of its most important assets. In addition to the new logo, the JCA’s brand identity includes some of the most prominent college coaches in the nation who assist in the execution of the association’s mission and day-to-day affairs.

The Jewish Coaches Association was founded in 2006 as an advocacy and outreach group for Jewish basketball coaches. The organization’s mission is to utilize the teachings of the Jewish faith in order to foster the growth and development of coaching, program building and leadership skills amongst its members. The association also aims at creating networking opportunities for members around the nation and the overall support of Jewish basketball.

Temple Concord

There are many fans in central New York of basketball both for Syracuse University and the NBA. Temple Concord is honored to have one of the greatest 50 NBA players of all time as a member – Dolph Schayes. His son, Danny, played for the Syracuse Orange and was in the NBA for 18 years. Both Dolph and Danny have been part of a rich history of Jewish-Americans in basketball. In fact, the first person to make a basket in the NBA was a Jewish-American. There is a new documentary about the influence of Jewish-Americans on basketball. The special event will feature this film “The First Basket” and the guests of honor, Dolph and Danny Schayes.

Purpose

Creating the planned Schayes Community Fund. Dolph, Naomi and the Schayes family have been major supporters of Temple Concord and the Central New York community. The Schayes Community Fund will honor the family for their contributions. This debut event will benefit the fund and this year support the Food Pantry at Temple Concord. Other events for the Schayes Community Fund are planned for the future. This year’s event will give attendees a chance to see and hear how Jewish immigrants came to the United States, using basketball to assimilate into the American society. The program is a tribute to Jewish-Americans in basketball – past, present and future.

Format

The evening with Dolph and Danny Schayes will start out at 6:30 p.m. with a meet and greet buffet dinner. After dinner, the program will begin 7:45 p.m. with Master of Ceremonies, Bob Snyder, veteran sportswriter and currently a commentator on Syracuse University Basketball radio broadcasts. Bob, who is also a Jewish-American, will host a panel with Dolph and Danny discussing their experiences as Jewish-Americans in basketball. Also invited to participate on the panel is Bernie Fine, associate head basketball coach for the Syracuse Orange. There may be other guests added to the pael as well. Questions will be taken from the audience too. After the panel discussion, the documentary film “The First Basket” will be shown at 8:45 p.m. followed by a dessert reception at 10 p.m. Attendees have two options: Enjoy dinner, the program and the dessert reception or attend just the program and dessert reception.

Audience

The event is open to the general public. We expect basketball and sports fans from the Jewish and non-Jewish community attending as well as the Central New York community who’d like to support Dolph, Danny and the Schayes family.

Promotion and Visibility

The even will be promoted to the members of Temple Concord through email and in the temple bulletin, as well to the general Jewish community with invitations, ads and articles in the Jewish Observer along with announcements to Jewish organizations and other synagogues. We are also planning to have media marketing through TV, radio and print with articles, features and advertising to the general public. Sponsors will have recognition in the program book & at the event. Sponsors receive benefits depending on their donation.

Tribute to Jewish-Americans in Basketball Flyer -

The event is the world’s third-largest international athletic competition where over 9,000 Jewish athletes from more then 50 countries compete.

This past summer Bruce Pearl, head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers Men’s Basketball Team was elected to be the head coach for the Maccabi USA’s Open Men’s Basketball Team. “We are pleased and delighted to have a coach of Bruce’s caliber join us for the 18th Maccabiah,” said Ron Carner, General Chair, USA 18th World Maccabiah Games Organizing Committee.

Recruiting efforts and getting ready for the 2009 Tennessee season took a back-seat for Pearl in order for him to follow his dream and get involved with the Maccabiah Games. Bruce has been eying the games for a while and was finally recognized while coaching at Tennessee. “Quite frankly, they weren’t interested in a Division II coach,“ Pearl said, noting his career path. “It took my being successful at Milwaukee, at Tennessee to do it.”

The team, which consists of Jewish college players from teams including Bucknell, UPenn and Tennessee, began training camp at La Salle at the end of June in preparation for the tournament. Some of the players have a lot of ties to former NBA players and coaches. Dan Grunfeld, son of former Tennessee Volunteer, and Steven Pearl, son of head coach Bruce Pearl. Pearl and his team displayed a convincing 94-32 win in an exhibition game against Canada.

Not only is this a great honor for Pearl and his players to go visit the homeland and play against some great competition, but it also is a treat for the Israeli players. Pearl mentioned the exposure that this brings to Israeli players like Omri Casspi, who was a first-round draft pick this year by the Sacramento Kings.

In addition, to his attempt to bring home a gold medal at the Maccabiah Games, it would also be beneficial for Pearl to make some connections with the Israeli basketball players. “I would love to have a couple of young Israeli players at Tennessee,” Pearl said. There is a lot of talent in Israel and the professional Israel Basketball League has been improving the level of play each year. Yaniv Simpson, a former member of the Under-19 Israeli national team, currently plays at Monmouth University.

After posting a 3-1 record in pool play, coach Pearl led Team USA to the medal round. Their only loss came to Russia with a last second basket that gave the Russians a two-point win.

Pearl and company entered the medal round with a match-up against Canada. With solid play from Dane DiLiegro, Bryan Cohen and Steven Pearl, Team USA showed that their exhibition win over Canada was no fluke. The win over Canada, earned the Americans a spot in the gold medal game against the home favorites and defending gold medalist, Israel.

Israel dominated all of their opponents up until the final game against the Americans. They beat Argentina by over 50 points, when the USA only beat Argentina by eight points. Israel also benefited from having the luxury of having home-court advantage during the gold medal game. In addition to the home crowd, Israel also had a number of players who were playing professionally.

The game turned out to be a fantastic game. Grunfeld put together a nice three-point play with under 30 seconds left to tie the game in regulation and send the game into overtime. Once the Americans got the Israelis into overtime, it was all Grunfeld who had six points to lead the Americans to a 95-86 victory. The clutch performance earned Grunfeld MVP honors.

It was the third gold medal that the USA has won in the last 24 years. Coach Pearl was finally able to accomplish one of his long-time goals and bring home the gold. “This is one of the highlights of my career,” Pearl said. Now the focus is back to getting Tennessee ready for their 2009 season and hitting the road recruiting.