(www.yumacs.com) The No. 5 Yeshiva University men’s basketball team once again earned a victory over a reigning NCAA tournament team, this time defeating Stevens Institute of Technology by a score of 88-70, at Canavan Arena on Monday evening. The Maccabees now move into a tie with University of Wisconsin-Platteville for the second longest winning streak in Division III men’s basketball history at 36 games.
Yeshiva’s (7-0) largest lead of the evening was 37 points and never trailed outside of the first 1:43 of the game.
“Thought our defensive effort tonight was really inspiring,” Yeshiva University Head Coach Elliot Steinmetz said. “Good carryover from the second half of our last game.”
Senior guard Eitan Halpert led the way for the Maccabees by scoring a career-high 32 points, shooting 12-for-15 from the field (6-for-7 from 3-point range) in the process, while dishing out six assists and forcing five steals.
Junior guard Ryan Turell also had a productive game, netting 25 points and bringing down seven boards. The Los Angeles native shot 50% from the floor (9-for-18).
The key in the first half was an 11-2 run by the Maccabees, capped off by a successful jump shot from sophomore guard Ofek Reef, that gave the Blue and White a 22-13 hold. After Stevens (0-3) pulled to within six, YU rallied again, this time by scoring seven of the game’s next nine points, to inflate its cushion to 30-18 with 5:39 remaining in the opening period. Turell concluded the run by converting a layup, while being fouled, and then adding the free throw for the three-point play.
Later in the stanza, Yeshiva blew the game open by scoring 17 straight points to take a commanding 47-21 hold with 1:10 left in the period. During that game-altering run, Halpert connected on two shots from downtown and Turell once again executed a traditional three-point sequence. Both teams went into the intermission with YU up by a score of 49-23.
Halpert’s efficient shooting continued in the second half, as he took a feed from Turell and drained another shot from beyond the arc to cap off an 18-2 run that skyrocketed Yeshiva’s lead to 67-31 with 15:22 to go. Just over 1:30 later, senior forward Gabriel Leifer kicked it out to Halpert who drilled another 3-point shot to give Yeshiva its largest advantage of the evening, 72-35.
The Ducks were able to close the gap a bit before the end of the game, but it was not nearly enough as Yeshiva picked up the historic win, 88-70, to earn a tie for the second longest unbeaten streak in NCAA Division III men’s basketball history.
For Yeshiva, Reef netted 10 points, grabbed three rebounds and forced just as many steals. Leifer had six points, seven assists and blocked four shots. Sophomore guard Matan Zucker generated six points, seven boards and three assists, while freshman forward Nadav Altit chipped in with five points.
No. 5 Yeshiva is scheduled to play Manhattanville for the third time this season on Sunday. Tip-off at the Max Stern Athletic Center is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
