With an outstanding performance on the offensive and defensive ends, the New York University men's basketball team knocked off #1 ranked and previously undefeated University of Rochester 65-51 on Friday, February 1, at the Coles Sports Center in Manhattan.
 
In front of a capacity crowd of 1,920, the Violets (13-6, 3-5) flustered the top-ranked Yellowjackets' (18-1, 7-1) offense all night. NYU held Rochester to a season-low 51 points, 12 fewer than its previous worst output. The Violets also held its University Athletic Association (UAA) foe to a season-low 35.1% (13-37) from the field and forced 15 Yellowjacket turnovers.
 
Offensively, NYU hit big shot after big shot, converting 52.2% (24-46) from the floor and a season-high 57.1% (8-14) from three-point range. Ryan Tana and Kyle Stockmal led the offensive effort, combining to go 8-9 from beyond the arc and 12-17 overall. Tana finished with 18 points, while Stockmal had 17.

The win came just a week after the Yellowjackets topped the Violets 65-50 in Rochester.
 
Highlights
 
- After falling behind 6-0 to start the game, the Violets went on a 19-3 run to build a double-digit lead. NYU held Rochester scoreless from the 15:46 mark to 6:59, a stretch of nearly nine minutes.
 
- The Violets took a 28-19 lead into the locker room and began to create even more distance midway through the second half. Costis Gontikas sandwiched a layup between threes from Stockmal and Tana as NYU went up 47-31 with 11:20 to play.
 
- Rochester made a run from there, cutting the Violet lead to six, 49-43, with 6:23 left. However, Tana and Stockmal responded to Yellowjacket threes with triples of their own to keep Rochester at bay.
 
- After Kevin Sheehy went 1-2 at the line to make it an eight-point game, Tana raced down the court for a fastbreak layup, and Carl Yaffe followed with six straight points to put the game away.
 
- NYU held John DiBartolomeo, a National Player of the Year candidate who came in fifth in the nation in scoring at 24.4 points per game, to just one field goal. DiBartolomeo was forced to earn his points at the line, as 10 of his 12 came at the charity stripe.
 
- Yaffe joined Tana and Stockmal in double figures with 14 points to go along with seven rebounds and three assists. With his 17 points, Stockmal increased his career total to 990, leaving him just 10 shy of 1,000.
 
"There was a lot of energy in the building," said Head Coach Joe Nesci. "We played well on both ends of the floor. Offensively, we took what the defense gave us and found a lot of open shots. Kyle and Ryan stepped up and hit a number of big shots."
 
The Violets return to the court on Sunday, February 3, when they host Emory University at Coles at noon.