ST. LOUIS, MO – The University of Rochester men's basketball fell to the Washington University in St. Louis Bears, 89-78, on Sunday afternoon at the WashU Fieldhouse.
 
Despite Rochester shooting 45.2 percent for the contest and 11-for-29 from beyond the arc, the Bears dominated the glass, outrebounding the Yellowjackets, 47-23 and 14-3 on the offensive glass, and knocked down 31-of-34 attempts from the free throw line, the most made free throws by a Rochester opponent this season.
 
After hitting seven three-pointers in the first half, URochester led by one at the halftime break, led by eight points from Jordan Owusu. Justin Odibo got the first-half scoring started with Rochester's first made triple, before the Bears surged ahead with a seven-point spurt.
 
Trailing by three, 11-8, with just under 13 minutes to play in the first, back-to-back three-pointers by Owusu gave Rochester a 14-11 advantage, one of nine leads UR held in the contest.
 
Back-to-back buckets from Camden Fleming helped the 'Jackets extend their lead to five, 18-13, with 10:33 left in the first half, but an 8-0 WashU run would put the Bears back in front just shy of the five-and-a-half-minute mark of the first.
 
Odibo and Corvin Oprea would keep things close with a layup and another triple, but George Gale answered Oprea's triple, and two Connor May free throws put the Bears up six with 1:46 remaining in the period.
 
However, the Yellowjackets would end the first half on a 10-2 run, highlighted by back-to-back threes from Tomiwa Adetosoye and Oprea, and capped off by Owusu's driving layup with 23 seconds left in the first to take a 39-37 lead at the break.
 
With the first six points of the second, though, the Bears would retake the lead, 43-39, on back-to-back buckets from Calvin Kapral. URochester and WashU traded leads early on in the second, with Odibo's triple with 16:46 remaining retaking the lead for Rochester, while Anthony Przybilla put the Bears back in front, 45-44, with his layup on WashU's ensuing possession.
 
Rochester jumped ahead again on Owusu's triple, one of three on the afternoon for the first year, and after Oprea answered Jake Davis' dunk with a driving layup, the 'Jackets and Bears stood tied at 49-all with 14:20 remaining, one of eight ties in the contest.
 
Seven-straight points, though, all scored by May, would give WashU the lead, and jumpstart an 11-2 run that put the Bears up for good. May's seven points came over a four-minute scoreless stretch for the 'Jackets, turning a 49-49 tie into a 56-49 WashU lead.
 
May then capped off the 11-2 run with a layup just past the nine-minute mark, helping flip the game in WashU's favor.
 
Oprea answered back with a pair of layups, cutting the Bears' lead down to five, 60-55, with 7:24 left, but that'd be as close as the Yellowjackets would get the rest of the way. In the bonus with more than six minutes left, WashU started earning free throws in bunches, going 6-for-6 from the line over a 1:15 stretch.
 
Kapral's free throws gave the Bears their first double-digit lead of the afternoon, 68-58, with 4:49 to play, while Yogi Oliff and Theo Rocca both went 2-for-2 at the line to keep Rochester from closing the gap.
 
Oprea cashed another three to bring Rochester within six, 79-73, with under two minutes remaining, but the Bears would continue to hit their free throws to put the game away. Kapral and Oliff combined to go 4-for-4 at the line over the next minute, sandwiched around a miss at the other end to put WashU back up 10.
 
Oliff would go to the line two more times in the final minute, finishing off a triple-double in the waning moments and giving WashU its largest lead of the day, 89-78, before the final buzzer sounded.
 
With the win, WashU moves to 13-5 (3-4 UAA) on the year, while the 'Jackets drop to 9-9 (2-5 UAA) with the loss.
 
Oprea was one of four 'Jackets in double figures, leading Rochester with 19 points and eight rebounds. Owusu added 17 points and a pair of steals, while Adetosoye scored 14 points and added three assists, and Odibo scored 13.
 
For WashU, Oliff notched a triple-double with 19 points, 17 rebounds and 12 assists, while May had a game-high 20 points.
 
As a team, Rochester shot 45.2 percent from the field and 37.9 percent (11-for-29) from beyond the arc, while WashU shot 45.8 percent and 21.1 percent (4-for-19) from distance.
 
WashU and Chicago will make the return trip to Rochester this upcoming weekend, as the 'Jackets host the Maroons to open another UAA weekend on Friday, Feb. 6 at 5:30 p.m inside the Louis Alexander Palestra, before wrapping up the weekend against the Bears on Sunday, Feb. 8 at 2:00 p.m.