Andy Stein's three-point play with 1:05 remaining lifted the New York University men's basketball team to a 63-56 victory over Clarkson University in the opening game of the 2012 NYU Holiday Classic on Monday, January 2, at the Coles Sports Center in Manhattan.
 
Stein broke the 11th and final tie of the game after taking a feed inside from Carl Yaffe. The senior then finished the layup and drew the and-one. He converted at the free-throw line for his 27th point of the game, carrying the Violets (8-0) to a thrilling win and helping them remain unbeaten both this season and in Holiday Classic play (11-0 all-time).
 
After Stein's go-ahead three-point play, the Golden Knights' (6-2) John Coleman missed a shot at the other end and Max Wein came down with the rebound. From there, NYU went 7-8 from the free-throw line to seal the victory – with five of those makes coming from Kyle Stockmal.
 
"We showed a lot of poise down the stretch," said Violet head coach Joe Nesci. "We expect close games in the UAA [University Athletic Association], so this type of experience is helpful."
 
With Stein dominating in the early going, it didn't appear as if the game would be so close. He scored 12 points in the contest's first 6:30 to help NYU build a 16-9 lead. The Violets led by 11 with just 2:45 left in the first half, but Clarkson closed the period on a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to 31-26 going into halftime.
 
The Golden Knights then tied the game at 34-34 on a Marques Charlton jumper with 16:53 to play, forging the first of nine second-half deadlocks.
 
Clarkson gained a late lead, 51-49, with 3:47 to play on a John Coleman fastbreak layup assisted by his brother, Jerry. But Stein scored seven of the game's next nine points to give NYU the win.
 
In addition to Stein's heroics, defense played a key role for the Violets, who were held below 70 points for just the second time this season. NYU limited the Golden Knights to just 38.3% (23-60) shooting while keeping Felix Llanos, who entered the game 14th in the country in scoring, to just seven points.
 
"Clarkson came into the game leading the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio, so I thought we did a good job defensively," noted Nesci.
 
Stein added a career-high 11 rebounds to his season-best 27 points, recording his third career double-double. Stockmal scored 11 points, nine of which came at the free-throw line, to go along with five assists and three steals. Yaffe totaled nine points and six boards.
 
John Coleman led the Golden Knights with 18 points, while Jerry Coleman posted a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Charlton also scored in double figures, netting 12 points.
 
The Violets continue play in the Holiday Classic tomorrow, Jan. 3, when they face Haverford College at 8:00 pm at Coles.