NEW YORK, NY - Putting a game in the W column for the first time this season, the Yeshiva Women's Basketball Team took down Purchase College, defeating the Panthers by a score of 50-46 on Tuesday, Jan. 14th.
 
On both sides of the ball, standout graduate student and reigning Skyline Player of the Year Daniella Bessler shone, leading the Maccabees to victory with her statline of 22 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and five steals, her fifth double-double of the season.
 
With the result, the Maccabees are now 1-12 on the season, 1-7 in conference play.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Yeshiva's offense struggled through the first quarter, only managing nine points on 4-13 shooting. The defensive unit picked up the slack however, holding Purchase to just 11 points, with the Maccabees trailing by just two at the break.
   
• YU's offensive woes carried into the second quarter. While a deep three from Jasmin Maly-Danker finally boosted the Mac score into double digits, those three points would prove part of just seven the women in blue and white managed throughout the period, going into halftime trailing, 23-16.
   
• Coming out of the break with a chip on her shoulder, Bessler both literally and metaphorically took matters into her own hands, scoring all 13 of Yeshiva's points throughout the third quarter. However, the effort was still not enough to wrest control of the contest away from Purchase, with the Macs headed into the fourth in an eight-point hole at 37-29.
   
• Seemingly inspired by their teammate's Herculean effort, the rest of the Maccabee squad began to see their shots rattle in, with buckets from Tali Cohen and Shai Rahamim knotting the contest up at 37-all with 5:54 remaining in the fourth. While a Purchase layup would briefly recapture the lead for the Panthers, a dagger of a three from Cohen just 15 seconds later handed YU their first lead in over 25 minutes of gametime at 44-43.
   
• Purchase would recapture the lead one more time before a Bessler layup swung the pendulum in Yeshiva's favor for good, putting YU up 46-45 with 56 seconds on the clock. Two costly Panther turnovers and stellar free throw shooting from Bessler and Rahamim over the final minute ensured Yeshiva's victory, with the Macs walking out of ARC Arena with their first win of the season at 50-46.
   
• On top of their offensive resurgence, a large part of Yeshiva's come-from-behind win can be credited to the defense, with the unit holding a previously effective Panther offense to just nine points throughout the final period.

 
MAC LEADERS

• Points: Bessler (22), Rahamim (12), Maly-Danker (3)
• Assists: Bessler (6), Rahamim (1), Cohen (1)
• Rebounds: Bessler (10), Hanan (6), Yolkut (6)
• Steals: Bessler (5), Cohen (3), Yolkut (2)
• Blocks: Hanan (2)

 
UP NEXT
Closing out the week on the road, the Macs will travel out to The College at Old Westbury on Thursday, Jan. 16 at 6:00 PM.