NEW YORK, N.Y. – The Yeshiva University men's basketball team earned another Skyline win after defeating St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn), 85-61, at the Max Stern Athletic Center on Tuesday evening. The Maccabees have now won four games in a row and are 3-0 in Skyline play.
 
After the Bears (1-6, 0-3 Skyline) scored the first four points of the contest, the Maccabees (5-3, 3-0 Skyline) answered with nine straight points, capped off by a layup from senior guard Jordan Hod that gave Yeshiva the lead, just over six minutes in. After St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) regained the advantage, 16-13, freshman guard Simcha Halpert drilled a three-point field goal to tie the game with 8:11 remaining in the opening half. 
 
With the score tied at 22, Hod nailed a shot from beyond the arc to give Yeshiva the lead, 25-22, with 4:37 left in the stanza. Hod's basket sparked a 10-1 run that was capped off by a layup from sophomore guard Judah Cohen, giving Yeshiva a commanding 30-23 lead with 3:38 left in the opening period. The Maccabees held a 42-35 advantage at the half.
 
In the second period, the Bears rallied to tie the contest at 44, less than four minutes in. YU responded by surging to a 9-0 run, capped off by a three-pointer from freshman forward Daniel Katz to give the Blue and White the lead for good, 53-44, with 14:58 left.
 
Yeshiva steadily increased its lead for the majority of the second half, as a three-point shot by Halpert gave the Maccabees their largest lead of the game, 74-54, with 8:00 remaining. St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) never got the game close as Yeshiva went on to earn the convincing Skyline victory.
 
For the game, Halpert led all players with 22 points, while grabbing seven rebounds, forcing two steals, and blocking just as many shots. Cohen added 15 points with four assists and three steals. Katz produced a career-high 14 points, shooting a perfect 4-4 from three-point range, while sophomore forward Tal Gweta added eight points.
 
Hod scored seven points and forced three steals, while senior forward Dean Pienica added six points of his own. Classmate Michael Berg dished out a game-high six assists, with five rebounds, while sophomore forward Michael Hayon added six points. Freshman Justin Hod drilled a three-point field goal, while his brother Tyler Hod blocked one shot.

The Maccabees will return to the Max Stern Athletic Center on Thursday, for another Skyline Conference matchup against Maritime College, beginning at 8:00 p.m.