BROOKLYN – The Yeshiva University women's basketball team earned a convincing road victory over Pratt Institute, 70-26, at Pratt Athletic and Recreation Center on Monday evening. The Maccabees have now won two games in a row coming off the break and have reached the .500 mark at 7-7. The Cannoneers drop to 1-16.
Strong Performances by Yeshiva: Leading the way for the Maccabees was senior guard Yuval Nitzan who netted a game-high 17 points, while grabbing eight rebounds, dishing out seven assists, and forcing five steals. The Hod Hasharon native shot 7-for-12 from the field, including 3-for-5 from beyond the arc. Junior guard Daniella Bessler produced 14 points, on 7-for-13 shooting from the floor, while snatching nine rebounds, providing five assists, forcing three steals, and producing a block.
Senior forward Daniella Rothman tallied a double-double with 11 points and just as many boards, while distributing five assists, collecting three steals, and blocking a shot. Classmate Gabrielle Kupferman recorded 13 points and three rebounds.
Keys of the Game: For the evening, the Macs shot 50.0% (31-for-62) from the field. YU's defense held Pratt to just 22.0% (11-for-50) from the field and 15.4% (2-for-13) from deep. Yeshiva outrebounded the opposition, 48-27. YU scored 44 out of its 70 points in the paint and only had five free throw attempts during the game, draining three of them.
How it Happened: The Maccabees jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead and never looked back. In fact, after Yeshiva won the opening tip, Nitzan rifled the ball to Bessler who quickly executed a layup attempt to give Yeshiva its first points of the game just three seconds into the contest.
After Pratt scored its first bucket of the contest to shrink YU's advantage to 6-2, the Maccabees exploded with 12 unanswered points, highlighted by two layups and a successful jump shot from Nitzan, to take a commanding 18-2 hold with 4:37 left to play in the opening quarter. YU padded its lead to 29-4 and that would be the score after 10 minutes of play.
The Cannoneers never got back into the game as Yeshiva inflated its advantage throughout the remainder of the contest to earn the team's seventh victory of the season.
Playing Important Roles for Yeshiva: Also having a productive game for YU was junior guard Shai Rahamim who dished out a game-high eight assists, while scoring three points, forcing just as many steals, and grabbing two boards. Rookie forward Mia Denti netted five points and snatched seven rebounds. Sophomore guard Abigail Koenig produced four points and an assist. Freshman guard Jasmin Maly-Danker drained a 3-point basket, brought down two boards, and had a steal. Senior guard Nina Yurovsky grabbed a rebound of her own.
Up Next: Yeshiva will host St. Joseph's University Brooklyn, in a Skyline Conference showdown with heavy playoff implications, on Wednesday evening. Tipoff at ARC Arena is scheduled for 8:00 p.m.