Men's Hoops Eclipsed by Skidmore, 80-75

Despite Five Players in Double Figures, Violets Drop Tip-Off Tournament Opener

Derek Becker shot 7-for-10 from the floor.

Jeff Altimar and Sakhile Sithole each tallied a game-high 20 points and helped Skidmore College pull away for an 80-75 victory over New York University in the first round of the NYU Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday afternoon at the Jerome S. Coles Sports Center in Manhattan.

Sithole netted 17 of his points after halftime, including nine in the final 3:38, for the Thoroughbreds (2-0), who will play Ferrum College, an 80-55 winner over Elmira College, for the Tip-Off Tournament title tomorrow at 3 p.m. Altimar (6-9 FG, 4-7 3FG) scored 12 of his points during the final 20 minutes for Skidmore and hit four of his team's 12 three-pointers.

Keith Jensen led five double-digit scorers with 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists for NYU (1-1), which lost in the opening round of its Tip-Off Tournament for just the second time in 19 seasons. The Violets will face either Elmira in the third-place game Sunday at 1 p.m.

Skidmore used a 19-10 run to forge a 33-33 tie, but trailed 42-39 after Derek Becker (14 points, 7-10 FG, 4 steals) converted a lay-up with 16:24 remaining. Altimar then buried two trifectas, while Sithole contributed a lay-up and two free throws to give the Thoroughbreds a 49-42 lead with 13:05 remaining.

NYU eventually rallied, taking a short-lived 64-63 lead when Jensen swished a three-pointer with 4:43 remaining. A bucket and a free throw from Kyle Clark (12 points, 4-5 FG) put Skidmore ahead to stay, 66-64, with 3:57 remaining.

The Violets got within 66-65, but Sithole almost singlehandedly salted the game away for Skidmore. A pair of power moves in the paint yielded two lay-ups and five successful free-throw attempts.

The trio of Altimar, Clark and Sithole helped Skidmore shoot 56.0% (16-for-25) in the second half and 48.1% (26-for-54) overall. The Thoroughbreds also hit 41.4% (12-for-29) of their free-throw attempts.

NYU shot 52.7% overall (29-for-55) and also placed Becker, Carl Yaffe (career-highs of 12 points and 8 rebounds), Richie Polan (12 tallies) and Andy Stein (11 points) in double figures. However, the Violets turned the ball over 18 times despite owning a 37-26 rebounding advantage.