The New York University men's basketball team, ranked #19 in the latest
D3Hoops.com Top-25 Poll, defeated the John Jay College Bloodhounds 81-67 on Wednesday, December 2, at the Coles Sports Center in Manhattan.
Evan Kupferberg led five NYU (5-0) double-digit scorers with 23 points, while adding game highs of 15 rebounds and four blocks.
John Jay (0-6) opened the scoring with a three-pointer, representing its biggest lead of the game. The Bloodhounds still led 15-14 when
Tony Bai, who finished with a career-high 13 points, scored the game's next seven points.
The Violets never trailed again.
"Coming off an injury, I wanted to be aggressive and pick up where I left off," Bai said. "Coach wanted me to take on a bigger role this season. I know my teammates and coaches have confidence in me, so I'm not afraid to take open shots."
NYU increased its lead to as many as 11 points before settling for a 36-28 halftime advantage.
The Violets bumped the lead to 13 early in the second half, but the Bloodhounds pulled within four on three occasions, the final time with 10:36 left in the game. Bai followed with a three-pointer,
Patrick Burns hit a free throw and John Jay never got closer the rest of the way.
The outcome, however, was still in doubt as the Bloodhounds got within 67-62 with 4:31 remaining. The Violets then closed the game on a 14-5 run to secure the victory.
"We got back our focus on defense. We forced them to take tough shots down the stretch," said Assistant Coach
Adam Parmenter. "We made some big stops and made our free throws at the end."
NYU outscored the Bloodhounds 24-5 at the free-throw line and held John Jay to 37.5% (27-72) shooting from the field.
HIGHLIGHTS:-
Ross Udine scored 16 points and recorded a game-high seven assists for the Violets.
- Burns finished with a double-double of 12 points and 13 rebounds.
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Costis Gontikas contributed 10 points.
- John Jay's Essien Epps led all scorers with 30 points.
"This was a good test for us against a scrappy young, talented team," Parmenter said. "Hopefully, we can learn from a win like this and continue to improve as a team."
The Violets now take a long break before returning to the court on Wednesday, December 30, at 7:00 pm when they host Yeshiva University at the Coles Sports Center.
