A Whole New Meaning for 'Street Ball' as New Yorkers of All Ages Dribble Basketball Astounding Seven Miles Through Manhattan Streets Including Times Square, Harlem and Upper West Side

NEW YORK, Sept. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- "Street ball" was taken to a whole new level today on the streets of New York by hundreds of New Yorkers of all ages as they dribbled a special ball over 122 city blocks and bounced it an estimated 10,000 times to celebrate an upcoming basketball game between the New York Knicks and a team from Israel to benefit the world's largest orphanage.

Anchoring the pilgrimage to Madison Square Garden where the intrepid ball handlers were met by the Knicks were the playmaking legends of Rucker Park who did special wrist exercises in preparation for the unique undertaking. They and other participants - 200 strong which included children from nearby schools, were accompanied by special police escort to ensure the ball never stopped bouncing and found its way safely to "The World's Greatest Arena."

The ball utilized came all the way from the Middle East to Rucker Park - the most iconic outdoor basketball court in the nation. Through crowded intersections, past curious tourists and amused residents, the "downtown dribblers" received water while on the move and were closely monitored for safety.

It was all to celebrate an upcoming basketball game, which will be played on October 18 at Madison Square Garden between the New York Knicks and Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv benefiting Migdal Ohr, the world's largest orphanage in Northern Israel and home to nearly 7,000 orphaned, impoverished, underprivileged and new immigrant children.

Robert Katz, executive vice president of the American Friends of Migdal Ohr, said that when these teams played two years ago, it was the most successful exhibition basketball game in the history of the Garden. In 2005, Maccabi became the first international team to win on North American soil when they defeated the Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre.

"The momentum building for this game has been amazing," Katz said. "Who says lightning doesn't strike twice? To see New Yorkers come together literally in the streets of New York to celebrate this great match between Maccabi and the Knicks is truly wonderful."

The event concluded at Madison Square Garden, where the final dribbler, Israeli Consul General for New York Asaf Shariv, handed it off to members of the waiting New York Knicks for a special reception honoring all the ball handlers who braved New York traffic and crowds to deliver the special ball. The Rucker players who donated their time in support of the upcoming game are part of the legendary Entertainers Basketball Classic summer tournament.

Israel Prize Laureate Rabbi Y.D. Grossman founded Migdal Ohr in 1972 with 18 children in a small one-story building in Northern Israel. Today Migdal Ohr is roughly the size of the Columbia University campus, where each day thousands of children from all over the world are fed, clothed, housed, educated and nurtured on to productive lives. Migdal Ohr runs a network of schools, providing academic and vocational studies while integrating new immigrant children into Israeli society through specialized curricula and after-school programs.

Tickets for the October 18 Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv versus Knicks game at Madison Square Garden are available at migdalohrusa.org.

SOURCE Migdal Ohr