New York University's sixth-ranked men's basketball team defeated Brandeis University, 70-52, in the teams' University Athletic Association (UAA) opener on Saturday at the John A. Paulson Center in Manhattan.

The Violets improved to 11-1 on the season, pushing their win streak to nine games and winning their UAA opener for the first time since 2017-18.

"I thought we were extremely tough. Brandeis is one of the toughest teams in the country, they do all of the little things, they're extraordinary on defense," said Head Coach Dave Klatsky. "So, we knew that we would have to be just as tough, if not tougher, to win the game and I do think in this particular game we were the tougher team."

Spencer Freedman led the way with a game-high-tying 17 points, along with seven assists and six boards. Zay Freeney and Emmanuel Onuama added 13 points each while Onuama pulled down seven rebounds.

"Defensively, I think that was the key. We were awesome, Emmanuel, Quinn (Clark) on the boards, Sav (Michael Savarino) with nine rebounds today," Freedman said. "We're really playing as a unit, everyone's buying in to getting stops. We just take every possession and make the most of it."

NYU shot 44.4 percent from the floor (28-of-63) while limiting the Judges to a 37.3 percent clip (19-of-51). The Violets forced 17 turnovers, out-rebounded Brandeis 40-27 and out-scored the Judges 44-22 in the paint.

Brandeis led 5-4 three minutes into the contest, but NYU rattled off nine consecutive points for a 13-5 lead at the 13:40 mark. The Judges fought back and took a two-point lead, 18-16, four minutes later, but an 8-0 NYU run put the hosts ahead for good.

The Violets entered the break with a 41-28 advantage, with Onuama and Freeney combining for more than half of NYU's points in the frame (11 each).

Brandeis came within 11 points on two occasions early in the second half but that was the closest it was for the rest of the game, as Freedman's layup at 9:37 put NYU ahead by 20 (59-39) and the hosts didn't look back from there.

The Violets avenged last year's 20-point loss at Brandeis to open UAA action and have now won back-to-back outings against the Judges after last season's win in the regular season finale.

Savarino finished with nine points, a game-high nine rebounds, an assist and a steal. Cinque Stephens added eight points, four steals, two boards and an assist off the bench.

"I thought Spencer did unbelievable for the matchups he was given. They play very physically, but he was able to find daylight and make the right decision whether it was him scoring or finding his teammates," Klatsky noted. "That's who he is. He's one of the best point guards, if not the best, in the country and he showed that today when we needed him most."

The UAA slate rolls on for the Violets, who next travel to Cleveland, OH, to play Case Western Reserve University on Friday, January 12, at 7:30pm.