The New York University men's basketball team fell by three points, 66-63, to visiting University of Rochester in University Athletic Association (UAA) action on Friday, February 1, at the Sportsplex in Manhattan.

Rochester improved to 15-4 on the season and 5-3 in UAA action to stay one game out of first place, while the Violets slipped to 6-13 overall and 0-8 in UAA play.

NYU scored the first seven points of the game and led for much of the first half until a late 10-2 run from the Yellowjackets gave the visitors a 33-32 advantage at halftime. 

A layup from Dom Cristiano put NYU in front 38-37 with 16:25 to play, but it marked the last time the Violets led as Rochester scored the next seven points and never looked back.

The Yellowjackets increased their lead to a game-high 12 points with 3:18 to play, but NYU did not go away. The Violets scored eight in a row to make it a four-point game with 31 seconds left and then made it a three-point contest with 14 seconds to play. 

Rochester missed a pair of foul shots with nine seconds on the clock and NYU was able to get one look to tie it, but Jule Brown's three-pointer didn't fall and the Yellowjackets escaped New York City with the victory. 

Cristiano led the Violets with a game-high 19 points and also grabbed nine boards. He was joined in double figures by Jimmy Martinelli, who finished with 11 points.

Ryan Clamage was Rochester's leading scorer, finishing with 15 points. 

The Violets return to action on Sunday when they host Emory University back at the Sportsplex, Tip-off is slated for 12pm.