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The Los Angeles Maccabi Basketball features more than a few great varsity players from the L.A. region. The team will be competing this month from August 17 through August 23 in Detroit at the JCC Maccabi games against teams from, New York, Chicago, New Jersey, Mexico, and other cities in the U.S. and Canada. The team is coached by Howard Abrams head coach of Montclair Prep in Van Nuys, and Steve Goldstein, head basketball coach at La Salle High in the San Gabriel Valley.

	David Fischer finishes with a layup
L.A. JCC Maccabi Team Front (l-r): Adam Drell, Matt Bendik, Darren Tarlow, Chad Garson, Darren Freedman. Middle:(l-r) Eric Geffner, Kelly Ross, David Fischer, Adam Allegro. Back Row (l-r) Coach Howard Abrams and Coach Steve Goldstein Not Pictured: Josh Lewis

The team features some very exciting and experienced players, almost all returning Maccabi players, each with several years of varsity experience. This is a team which is strong, patient, and fairly disciplined and they will throw a variety of looks at their opponents. The team features:

Adam Allegro (6'-5" So. F) from Agoura High (Agoura). Adam played on the LA 13-14 team last year in Seattle which won a Gold Medal in the 1997 Maccabi Games. A veteran of several club and and traveling teams, including Darryl McDonald's San Fernando Cavs, Adam played JV and Varsity at Agoura High this past season, and will be one of their key players next season. A prolific rebounder, Adam has excellent footwork, tremendous lateral quickness and plays well with his back to the basket.

Matt Bendick (5'-10" So. PG) from Los Angeles Palisades High (Los Angeles): Matt was also a member of the LA 13-14 Maccabi team which won a Gold Medal int he 1997 Seattle Maccabi games. Matt is a lightening quick, smart player with great defensive skills, nice court vision, and good passing ability, and he has a good handle and the ability to break down a defender and drive to the basket. A truly unselfish player, Matt was selected as one of two "Athletes of the Year" from the Maccabi team in Seattle.

Adam Drell (6'-5" Jr. F/C) from Chatsworth High (Chatsworth): Adam is strong, quick and has some of the best moves in and around the basket of any player on the team. He loves to rebound, and has great footwork, and has a decent j. Normally a forward, he's adapted well to his role as the post man on this team, and his pure athleticism and good court sense will be great asset. He loves to dunk, and along with Lewis, is the other "enforcer" on the team. Adam most recently played at the West Coast All-Star Camp, for Ron Quarterman's ARC high school traveling team, and for his Chatsworth team which competed in Vegas this summer and at the War on the Floor Tournament.

David Fischer (6'-3" So. G) from Los Angeles University High (Los Angeles): David is another big, strong guard who can also play at the forward spot or at shooting guard, and he's clearly been hitting the weights since last year, because he's put on about 20 lbs of muscle. A very intelligent player, he may also be the best pure athlete on the team. A great defender, very quick, he can also shoot well out to three point range. David was a member of the 13-14 LA team which won a Gold Medal in Seattle in 1997.

Darren Freedman (5'-9" Jr. G) from Encino Crespi (Encino): Darren has played Maccabi for several years, and last year was a member of the 15-16 team which won a Bronze Medal in Seattle. He's played freshman and jv ball at Crespi, and was the starting point guard on the LA 13-14 Maccabi team that won a Silver Medal in New Jersey. He's a quick defender, with good hands, a nice handle and good touch in and around the hoop, and he has a reasonably good j out to about 18'. Look for Darren and Bendick to trade responsibilities at the point.

Chad Garson (6'-4" Jr. SG/F) from Studio City Harvard-Westlake (Calabasas): One of the best pure perimeter shooters on the team, Chad has played Maccabi for the last three years, winning a Silver Medal on the 13-14 team which competed in New Jersey, and winning a Bronze Medal in Seattle in 1997 on the 15-16 team. Chad played Varsity at Harvard-Westlake this past season. He has great soft hands, a nice touch, decent footspeed, and very good shooting mechanics, and best of all he has dramatically stepped up his defensive intensity, and will be one of the team leaders in steals and forced turnovers. Most recently he played at the Pump West-Coast All-Star Camp, in H-W's summer league and at several tournaments including in the Palm Springs Summer Classic series and at the War on the Floor Tournament.

Eric Geffner (6'-5" Jr. G/F) from Studio City Harvard-Westlake (Sherman Oaks): Eric is also a veteran of several years of Maccabi play. Last year he was on the LA 13-14 team which won the Gold Medal in Seattle, and the year prior to that he competed on LA's 13-14 team which won the Silver in New Jersey. Eric plays varsity at Harvard-Westlake, and was pretty consistently a starter as a sophomore. Eric is one of the best rebounders on the team, and was described by Greg Hilliard, the H-W coach, as having a "great nose for the ball". With his good vertical leap he has the ability to block shots or alter them, and is one of the smartest players on the floor. He was the MVP of the LA Seattle team. Eric missed the West Coast All-Star Camp, but did play in the War on the Floor and the Palm Springs Summer Classic.

Josh Lewis (6'-4" Jr. F) from Los Angeles University High (Los Angeles): Josh is also a veteran of several years of Maccabi basketball: He was a member of the LA 13-14 team which won a Silver in New Jersey, and last year's 15-16 team which won the Bronze Medal in Seattle. Josh is one of the "enforcers", and along with Drell, Tarlow and Allegro, will make up the inside front line. A very athletic, strong and tough player, Josh has very good defensive fundamentals and a decent shot.

Kelly Ross (5'-10 Jr. G) from Oak Park High (Agoura). Kelly is a new addition to Maccabi Basketball this year. He's quick, smart and can hit it from inside or outside. A slasher, he has a good first step, can break down a defender and pushes it on the break. He's very athletic, and could be one of the leading scorers on this team.

Darren Tarlow (6'-5" Sr. F) from West Hills Chaminade (Calabasas): Darren is also a veteran of last year's 15-16 LA Maccabi team which won the Bronze in Seattle, and he played JV at Chaminade last year. This year he has improved his defensive skills tremendously, and is now one of the strongest and toughest members of the team. Darren most recently played summer league and in several tournaments for Chaminade, as well as at the Pump West-Coast All-Stars (first session) where he was named to the All-Hustle All-Star Team along with teammate J.J. Todd (6'-10" Sr. C). Darren is more of a rebounder and slasher, with a very quick first step, but he can also pull up for the outside shot.


Chad Garson	Adam Drell rebounding