NEW YORK, NY - Playing their final game of the 2025 calendar year, the Yeshiva Men's Basketball Team fell to Illinois Wesleyan University, losing to the Titans by a score of 72-71 on Monday, Dec. 29th.
 
Prior to the contest, IWU attracted national attention with their play, achieving multiple high rankings in the D3hoops.com national poll. The Titans were listed at #16 in the preseason, #6 in week 1, #10 in week 2, #18 in week three, and received votes in week 4.
 
The Maccabees were led by the duo of Zevi Samet and Or Sundjyvsky, with both players putting up 22 points on the night.
 
YU also saw a stellar game out of big man Yoav Oselka, with the Israel native coming just one board short of a double double at 10 points and nine rebounds.
 
With the result, the Macs are now 3-7.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Defenses ruled the day early on, with both teams being held scoreless through the first two minutes of play. IWU finally broke the drought with a bucket 2:18 into the contest, with the Macs responding a minute and a half later with their first score. The Titans parlayed that momentum into a 9-0 run, shutting out YU and taking an 11-2 lead with 13:34 remaining.
   
• Undeterred, the Maccabees fought back, with back-to-back threes from Yair Dovrat slicing YU's deficit down to three at 13-10. The Macs continued to press, tying the game at 18-all, before seizing their first lead of the night on a Sundjyvsky dagger to go up 21-18 with 5:25 remaining.
   
• Yeshiva's advantage would not hold, with Illinois Wesleyan retaking their edge two minutes later, but a resilient Maccabee offense refused to cede any breathing room, sending both teams into the half separated by just three points at 30-27.
   
• The Titans broke out of Yeshiva' defensive grip to start the second half, quickly ballooning their lead into the double digits at 39-29. This margin would hold through the first nine minutes of the period, as Yeshiva trailed 54-45 with 10:48 remaining.
   
• Despite their deficit, the Maccabees rallied. Catalyzed by a tough Sundjyvsky layup, Yeshiva began chipping away at IWU's edge over the next six minutes, leveling the score twice at 59-all and 62-all before taking a 65-62 lead on a killer Samet stepback.
   
• This advantage would not last, with neither team able to hold the edge for longer than a minute. The lead switched back and forth three times before landing at 70-70 with 26 seconds remaining, setting up a thrilling finish.
   
• With two ticks left on the clock, Sundjyvsky stole an IWU inbound, and sprinted to the other end of the court for what could have been a game-winning layup. While he missed the shot, he was fouled by a Titan defender, setting YU up with two free throws. However, in the process, the rim-running forward also drew a technical, giving Illinois Wesleyan a pair of free throws of their own. IWU nailed both foul shots, going up 72-70. Sundjyvsky splashed his first shot, cutting the deficit to 72-71, but rattled out the second. The Titans corralled the rebound, not allowing the Macs another possession before the final buzzer sounded.

 
MAC LEADERS

• Points: Samet (22), Sundjyvsky (22), Oselka (10)
• Assists: Bardichev (5), Oselka (3), Dovrat (3)
• Rebounds: Oselka (9), Sundjyvsky (6), Itcovichi (5)
• Steals: Bardichev (3), Sundjyvsky (2), Dovrat (2), Zakheim (2)

 
UP NEXT
Taking the court for the first time in 2026, the Maccabees will travel to the University of Mount Saint Vincent on Sunday, Jan. 4th at 3:00 PM.