Community Magazine June 2014

Sportsman The King Manor of the Month This month's King Manor Sportsman of the Month is... Nathan Bibi “I t was a privilege to coach Nathan Bibi this past season,” says Stanley Rishty, coach of the Hillel Heat varsity basketball team. Nathan’s accomplishments on the court were very special. As a junior playing in his first year for the varsity team, Nathan led the entire country of yeshiva high school varsity boys basketball teams with a scoring average of 22.8 points a game. This was no small feat, as he was competing against the top yeshiva high schools from Brooklyn, New Jersey, Manhattan, and Long Island, as well as Detroit, Boston, Memphis, Houston, Chicago, and Toronto. Moving up from junior varsity to varsity is a big step, and Nathan didn’t miss a beat. He seamlessly made the adjustment to competing against many older and more experienced players. In his very first game on the varsity squad, playing in the Magen David Yeshiva pre-season tournament against a talented and experienced HAFTR team, Nathan scored 28 points – by far the highest for either team that night. In his very first game of the regular season, playing against a very good Kushner team, on the Kushner court, he scored 29 points! Word of Nathan’s prowess quickly spread throughout theYeshiva High School League. From that night on, throughout the season, every team focused on stopping him, doing everything they could not to let him beat them. Teams would double team him, and even triple team him at times. They used every defensive trick they could think of to slow him down – but it was all to no avail. Whenever Hillel’s young squad competed against the stronger, more experienced teams, Nathan often took over and carried the team on his back, making sure they would be competitive. He always fought hard, regardless of the opponent. Nathan’s accomplishments on the court were not only limited to scoring. “Nathan was totally committed to playing on both sides of the ball, every possession,” says Coach Rishty. “When trying as their coach to give my team an example of how to play the game as hard as you could, and give it all they had, all the time, I told them to watch Nathan play the game, and follow his example of dedication and hard work. If they did, they would surely succeed. He was an inspiration to his teammates to always play hard, play together, to accomplish the common goal of winning.” Nathan shined off the court, as well. A congregant of the Park Ave. Synagogue, Nathan participated in the “hand in hand” program, where he would visit a young student every week, to talk, go out, and just lend a hand. Hillel Yeshiva and the community are very proud of Nathan for his efforts both on and off the court. And so, it is our pleasure to honor Nathan Bibi as Sportsman of the Month. Congratulations Nathan! 48 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE