University of Rochester Athletics

The University of Rochester stayed in the thick of the University Athletic Association men's basketball race by posting a 71-55 victory over New York University at the Louis Alexander Palestra on Friday evening.
 
It was Rochester's third consecutive win – all three coming in the Palestra. Rochester is 14-3 overall, 4-2 in the UAA. NYU lost its sixth straight game. The Violets are 6-11 overall, 0-6 in the UAA. The same two teams meet again in one week- this time in New York City.
 
The win wound up putting Rochester into a four-way tie for first place in the UAA with Emory, Washington, and Chicago. Brandeis and Carnegie Mellon are 3-3 after losing road games at Emory and Washington. Case Western Reserve upended Chicago and sits at 2-4.
 
On Sunday, Rochester will host Brandeis University in a special 11 am start, done to accommodate Brandeis' travel needs. NYU goes to Atlanta for a Sunday game vs. Emory.
 
Ryan Clamage led all scorers with 19 points for Rochester. He added nine rebounds and two assists. Jacob Wittig scored 12 points and handed out four assists. Patrick Benka supplied 10 points. Andrew Lundstrom scored nine points.
 
NYU did not have a double figure scorer. The Violets struggled to find an offensive flow. NYU shot 30% from the floor in the first half, 36% in the second dhalf. Alex Casieri led NYU with nine points and three assists. Bobby Hawkinson and Riley Demps scored seven points. Jimmy Martinelli and Noah Fennell had six each.
 
Rochester broke away from a small 10-7 lead with a 15-3 burst over seven minutes. Clamage had five points in the burst which included a three-pointer. Alexander Gamble scored four. When Wittig drove for a layup with 8:35 left in the half, UR led, 25-10.
 
NYU took over, going on a 13-3 run of its own to close within 28-23 with 3:20 remaining. Casieri had five points (he hit a trey) and Martinelli sank one as well. A fallaway off the right baseline by Casieri and one free throw from Demps sawed the deficit to 28-23 with just over three minutes left in the half. UR led, 34-25, at intermission.
 
Four Yellowjackets contributed to a 9-0 run early in the second half as Rochester moved ahead, 43-27. The lead grew as large as 20 points six different times in the second half.
 
NYU held a 37-35 edge on the glass, led by Martinelli (eight) and Ted Georgiadis (seven). Martinelli also had four steals. Clamage's nine boards led Rochester. Gamble grabbed five.