The New York University men's basketball team defeated host Pine Manor College 81-50 on Wednesday, January 8, in Chestnut Hill, MA.

The Violets, who last played on December 29 in an 80-63 loss to Western Connecticut State University, improved their record to 7-4 while the Gators fell to 3-11. 

NYU jumped out to an early 11-3 lead after Jaden Narwal (Vancouver, Canada/Collingwood School) hit a three-pointer with 15:08 left in the half. NYU would never lead by less than eight in the first 20 minutes of action, ending the first half ahead, 43-23. 

NYU shot 62.5% (15-of-24) from the field over the first 20 minutes and were 80% (8-of-10) from the foul line at halftime. 

"Tonight was a great 40 minutes of full team effort," said Head Coach Dagan Nelson. "We executed our game plan on both sides of the ball."

The Violets began the second half on a 10-2 run and never led by less than double-digits the rest of the way. They extended the streak to 15-3 and took a game-high 32-point lead, 58-26, on a pair of free throws from Bobby Hawkinson (Frankfort, IL/Marist) with 16:00 left in the game.

The Gators managed to pull within 26, 64-38. But, an ensuing 14-9 NYU streak helped keep a comfortable lead. The advantage eventually grew to  31 points, 78-47, on Eric Berschadsky's (Tenafly, NJ/Tenafly) foul shots with 2:44 remaining.

"We look forward to taking pride in our preparation for Brandeis to open UAA play on Saturday," Nelson concluded. 

Cade Hoppe (El Dorado Hills, CA/Oak Ridge) led the way for NYU, posting 16 points and grabbing six rebounds. He shot 5–for-10 from the field and 6-for-8 from the foul line. Ethan Feldman (New York, NY/The Salisbury School) also scored in double figures with 15 points. 

The Violets return to the court when they begin University Athletic Association (UAA) play on Saturday, January 11. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00pm and will be preceded by a women's game between the two schools beginning at 1:00pm.