The New York University Men's Basketball Team suffered a 97-61 setback to #4-ranked Washington University in St. Louis in a University Athletic Association (UAA) contest on Friday, January 21 in St. Louis, MO.

Rookies Zay Freeney (Phoenix, AZ/South Mountain) and Jacob Sussman (Mount Olive, NJ/The Lawrenceville School) were bright spots for the Violets (9-4, 0-3), each scoring 15 points on efficient shooting.

Freeney hit 5-of-8 field-goal attempts (2-of-4 from three) with two rebounds, an assist and a block.

Sussman was red-hot from downtown, connecting on all five of his three-point jumpers while adding five boards, an assist and a block.

Jack Nolan, the UAA's leading scorer, paced the Bears (13-1, 3-0) who held NYU to 31.0 percent shooting in the first half for a 40-27 halftime advantage.

The Violets' offense found some life in the second half, converting 50 percent of their field goals. But, WashU caught fire as well, hitting 23-of-35 shots in the final 20 minutes to outscore NYU 57-34 in the final frame.

"WashU outplayed us tonight in every aspect of the game," said Head Coach Dagan Nelson.

Cinque Stephens (Dallas, TX/Wilbraham & Monson) added nine points (3-of-4 FG) and a steal in just 14 minutes off the bench. Senior captain Bobby Hawkinson (Frankfort, IL/Marist) pulled down a game-high eight rebounds to go with six points, an assist and a block.

NYU continues its midwest road trip on Sunday, January 23 with another UAA matchup at the University of Chicago.