The New York University men's basketball team, ranked #12 in NCAA Division III, fell into a tie for first place in the University Athletic Association (UAA)  after suffering a 72-61 loss to Washington University in St. Louis on Friday, February 16, in St. Louis, MO.

The Violets (18-5, 8-4) are now tied with Case Western Reserve University (19-4, 8-4) atop the UAA standings with two games remaining.

Friday night's game with the Bears (16-7, 6-6) saw a very tight first half in which the Violets took a one-point lead, 33-32, into the break.

NYU grabbed a game-high nine-point lead, 24-15, on Zay Freeney's layup midway through the opening half, but a late rally by Wash U brought them to within that single point at halftime. 

The Violets were up by six, 57-51, following a pair of Freeney free throws with 8:18 remaining in the game. However, the Bears ended the contest on a 21-4 run and handed the Violets their second straight loss. 

Spencer Freedman finished with a career-high 35 points for the Violets, connecting on 14-of-23 shots from the field and 5-of-10 from three-point land while also adding six rebounds.

Freeney was NYU's only other double-digit scorer with 13 points.  

Emmanuel Onuama collected a team-high 10 rebounds.

The Violets will be back on the court for a date with the University of Chicago on Sunday. Tip-off in the Windy City is set for 12:00pm central time.