NEW YORK, NY - Suffering their first conference loss of the season, the Yeshiva Men's Basketball Team lost to Sarah Lawrence College, falling to the Gryphons by a score of 66-65 on Wednesday, Jan. 8th.
 
Offensively, the Maccabees were led by Zevi Samet, with the reigning Skyline Player of the Week tallying a team-high 25 points alongside three assists. Also proving his proficiency with the rock, Max Zakheim put up 14 points on 5-11 shooting.
 
Zakheim also had a stellar outing on the defensive side of the ball, helming the unit with six rebounds, three steals and a block.
 
With the loss, the Macs are now 5-7, 2-1 in conference play.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Both squads traded baskets back-and-forth through the first nine minutes, seeing the score tied at 14-14 with 11:18 left to play.
   
• This deadlock would remain through the rest of the period, with the contest knotting up again at 19-all. The Maccabees were able to scratch out a small advantage headed into halftime, with points from Samet and a deep triple from Zakheim over the final three minutes sending YU into the break up, 29-26.
   
• Yeshiva was unable to hold on to their edge come the second half, as the Gryphons wrested the lead away from their Skyline rivals. With the Maccabee offense slumping, only managing 11 points over 13 minutes, Sarah Lawrence rocketed their advantage into double-digits, burying YU in a 55-40 hole with only 7:51 remaining.
   
• However, not content to simply roll over, the Macs rallied. Shots from Roy Itcovichi, Jonathan Levy, Samet and Zakheim spurred a four-minute, 19-4 run, an effort that completely erased Sarah Lawrence's lead, tying the game at 59-59 with 2:53 left in regulation.
   
• The game remained a dead heat over the final three minutes of play, with the score leveling twice more at 61-all and 63-all. While neither side was able to secure a definitive advantage, two Samet foul shots gave YU a 65-63 lead with six seconds remaining. Yeshiva's smothering defense was able to force a Sarah Lawrence timeout with 2.8 seconds left, but could not stop the Gryphons' last second prayer of a three, a prayer that was answered as the ball splashed through the net as time expired. A stunned Maccabee team could only watch as Sarah Lawrence stormed the court, ultimately falling, 66-65.

 
MAC LEADERS

• Points: Samet (25), Zakheim (14), Itcovichi (8)
• Assists: Zakheim (4), Itcovichi (4), Samet (3)
• Rebounds: Itcovichi (7), Oselka (7), Zakheim (6), Cronin (6)
• Steals: Zakheim (3), Oselka (2), Levy (2)
• Blocks: Zakheim (1)

 
UP NEXT
Hitting the road, the Macs will travel out to Manhattanville University on Sunday, Jan. 12th at 12:00 PM.