NEW YORK – The No. 1 seed Yeshiva University men's basketball team earned a gutsy come-from-behind victory in the Skyline Conference Semifinal round over No. 5 seed Farmingdale State College, 74-69, in front of a sold out crowd at the Max Stern Athletic Center on Thursday evening. Yeshiva advances to its third straight league championship game and will face No. 2 seed Purchase College for the conference championship, as well as an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament, on Sunday afternoon at the Max Stern Athletic Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
Yeshiva (26-1) has now won 26 straight games which is the longest winning streak in all of NCAA Division III.
The victory did not come easy, as the Maccabees trailed by six, past the halfway point of the second half. Despite Yeshiva rallying to take the lead, a 3-point field goal by senior guard Ryan Kennedy propelled the Rams (14-13) in front, 67-66, with 1:45 left to play in regulation time. YU responded well under pressure by scoring six straight points claim a 72-67 hold with 22 ticks left on the clock. Sophomore guard Ryan Turell iced the game by hitting two key free throws to give the Macs a 74-69 hold with 10 seconds to go and that would be the final score.
"Gutsy performance against a tough team," Yeshiva University Head Coach Elliot Steinmetz said. "Gut check game and glad we get to compete on Sunday."
The Maccabees got off to a strong start defensively, holding the Rams scoreless for the first 4:47 of the contest. A 3-point field goal by senior forward Gabriel Leifer surged the Blue and White to a 9-2 cushion, less than six minutes into the battle. The Rams later countered as back-to-back layups by senior guard Anthony Miller, Jr. ignited the visiting team to a 5-0 run to shrink Yeshiva's lead to 13-9.
Later in the opening period, Leifer forced a steal and threw an outlet pass to Turell, who finished with a dunk to cap off seven straight points for the Maccabees to put them up, 28-17, with 5:30 left to play in the half. The Macs ended the stanza strong, as junior guard Eitan Halpert found senior forward Daniel Katz, who drained a 3-point field goal with 2.7 seconds left on the clock to give YU its largest lead of the night, 43-29, and that would be the score at halftime.
The Rams came firing back in the second half, as junior forward Dominique Senat scored six field goals from inside the arc, in a span of 6:56, to highlight an 18-6 run that pulled FSC to within two, at 49-47, with 12:55 remaining. The Rams' blitz was not over yet, as sophomore forward De'Shawn Todman's jumper evened the game at 49. On the visiting team's next possession, Miller, Jr. knocked down a shot from downtown to give Farmingdale its first lead of the game, 52-49, with 11:29 remaining in regulation time. Following Eitan Halpert's 3-point field goal that tied the game, freshman guard Corey Powell and Kennedy combined for back-to-back shots from beyond the arc to give Farmingdale its largest lead of the evening, 58-52, with 7:47 to go.
The Maccabees were down, but not out, as Eitan Halpert buried a 3-point field goal to cut the Rams' lead in half. Leifer connected on a shot from 3-point range that tied the game, 60-60, with 4:48 to go. Senior guard Simcha Halpert came up big on defense by forcing a steal and delivering it to Eitan Halpert, who finished off the play with a layup to put YU up by two, with 4:23 to go.
After FSC fell behind by four, the defending Skyline Conference champions tacked on four straight points to tie the game at 64 with 2:17 remaining. After Leifer executed a putback layup that allowed Yeshiva to retake the lead, Kennedy drained a 3-point shot on the other end to put the home team behind again, 67-66, with 1:45 remaining. Turell answered on the next possession by grabbing an offensive rebound and shooting the ball into the basket to propel YU to a 68-67 edge, with 1:15 remaining in regulation time, to the delight of the raucous Max Stern Athletic Center crowd.
After Yeshiva forced a turnover, Leifer drew a foul and drained two clutch shots from the charity stripe to extend Yeshiva's benefit to 70-67, with 44 ticks left on the clock. From that point on, YU was able to bury key free throws in the final 22 seconds to earn the come-from-behind win, 74-69, and secure a spot in its third straight Skyline Conference Championship game.
For the Maccabees, Turell tallied 22 points, grabbed six rebounds, and blocked a pair of shots. Leifer generated 17 points, nine rebounds, five assists, two blocks, and just as many steals. Eitan Halpert netted 17 points with three assists, while Katz added six points and five helpers.
For the Rams, Senat scored a team-high 19 points.
Check out YUMacs.com as well as our social media channels for more information regarding Sunday's Skyline Conference Championship showdown between Yeshiva and Purchase at the Max Stern Athletic Center.