BRONX, N.Y. – The Yeshiva University men's basketball team earned a non-conference victory over Lehman College, 71-61, at the APEX Main Gym on Wednesday evening. The Maccabees have now won six of their last seven games.
Leading the way for Yeshiva (7-4) was sophomore guard Judah Cohen, who produced a game-high 19 points, went 5-8 from three-point range, and brought down six boards. Senior forward Michael Berg scored 14 points with six rebounds, while sophomore forward Michael Hayon just missed a double-double with 10 points and nine boards.
After falling behind, 1:30 into the contest, Yeshiva scored five unanswered points, all by Cohen, to take the lead for good. The Maccabees slowly built their advantage, as a layup by freshman forward Daniel Katz put the visiting team up by double-digits, 19-9, with 12:01 left to play in the opening half.
Yeshiva continued its surge, as a three-point field goal by senior guard Jordan Hod extended YU's advantage to 31-18, with 5:40 remaining. In the closing seconds of the stanza, Berg received a feed from Hod, and laid the ball up and in at the buzzer to equal Yeshiva's largest lead of the night, 39-23, going into the intermission.
The Lightning (4-5) inched closer in the second half, but a spot-up three-pointer by Cohen helped Yeshiva regain its 16-point advantage, 46-30, with 16:38 remaining in regulation time. Lehman would not go down without a fight, as the home team rallied to pull within 11, at 54-43, with 9:16 left to play.
After drawing a foul, Berg hit a pair of free throws to snap Yeshiva's 2:20 scoring drought. After getting a stop on defense, the Maccabees took advantage of their offensive possession, as another three-pointer by Cohen put the Macs up by 16 points, at 59-43, with just over seven minutes remaining in regulation time. The Lightning once again rallied to pull within single-digits, in the final minute of the contest, but the Maccabees were able to hang on to earn the key non-conference win, 71-61.
For the evening, senior forward Dean Pienica and Katz each scored eight points, while grabbing five and seven rebounds respectively. Hod added seven points, led all players with six assists, and added five rebounds with two steals. Sophomore forward Tal Gweta scored three points, while classmate Justin Hod added two of his own.
Yeshiva will take some time off before returning to action on Thursday, December 29, against Baruch College at the Max Stern Athletic Center, beginning at 8:00 p.m.