With a trio of seniors recording career highs, the New York University men's basketball team topped Widener University 97-88 in overtime in the opening game of the NYU Holiday Classic on Saturday, December 29, at the Coles Sports Center in Manhattan.
 
Kyle Stockmal (27 points), Max Wein (23 points) and Devin Karch (22 points) all notched career highs in scoring to lead the Violets (7-1) past the Pride (2-8). Karch, who went 9-10 from the floor, added a career-best 13 rebounds to notch his first career double-double.
 
Highlights
 
- The teams headed to overtime tied at 82-82. After allowing Widener to shoot 54.5% (36-66) from the floor in regulation, NYU buckled down on defense in the extra session, holding the Pride to just 2-7 shooting. Cory Stockmal and Wein both had blocks in OT, while Carl Yaffe and Kyle Stockmal both recorded steals.
 
- A free throw from Widener's Andrew Radomicki forced the 13th and final tie of the game with 3:04 left in overtime. With 1:45 left, Yaffe hit the go-ahead three-pointer on a feed from Karch, putting the Violets up 89-86. From there, Cory Stockmal, Wein and Ryan Tana combined to go 6-6 from the line to seal the win.
 
- The Pride led 42-40 at the half, but NYU eventually took its largest lead of regulation, 59-52, with 14:02 left on a Kyle Stockmal steal and coast-to-coast finish.
 
- Widener came back to tie it at 64-all with 9:55 to play. The score was again tied, this time at 79-79, with 3:29 left, before Tana came up with a huge offensive board and kicked to Kyle Stockmal for a three. The Pride, however, got a free throw from Bob Makor and a layup from Greg Lawson to pull back even. Lawson's last-second layup attempt was no good, sending the game to OT.
 
- Kyle Stockmal added four steals to his career-high 27 points. He went 6-15 from beyond the arc, attempting the most three-pointers in a game in program history. Yaffe came close to recording a triple-double, totaling 13 points, nine rebounds and nine assists.
 
"We were getting caught out of position on the ball defensively and allowing too much penetration," said Head Coach Joe Nesci. "But, we made some plays, took care of the ball and did what we needed to do at the foul line."
 
The Violets return to the court on Sunday, December 30, for the finale of the Holiday Classic. They take on Clark University at 7:00 pm at Coles.