BLOOMINGTON, ILL. – The Yeshiva University men's basketball team's strong effort was not enough against No. 21 Illinois Wesleyan University, at Shirk Center, on Saturday evening as the Maccabees fell short, 76-71, in the opening round of the Sikma Hall of Fame Invitational.

Yeshiva (0-2) battled back throughout the night and sliced Illinois Wesleyan's (1-0) lead to one, 72-71, with 32 seconds left, but could not take advantage of opportunities to either take the lead or tie the game in the closing seconds. The Titans were able to clinch the win with successful free throw shots near the end of the contest.

Leading the way for Yeshiva was rookie Zevi Samet who scored a game-high 38 points, while shooting 15-for-29 from the field and draining eight 3-point shots. The Monsey native also grabbed six rebounds, dished out three assists, and forced a steal. Samet's 38 points are the fifth most scored in a single game by a rookie in program history.

First-year player Dothan Bardichev added nine points for the Macs, going 3-for-5 from beyond the arc, and delivering three assists. Freshman Roy Itcovichi netted eight points, distributed three assists, brought down a pair of boards, and collected a steal. Senior Matan Zucker had a solid game with six points, just as many rebounds, and four assists.  

The Maccabees got off to a good start, as a 3-point field goal by Samet gave YU a 10-5 advantage just five minutes into the contest. The Titans countered with six straight points to go ahead by one. Samet disrupted the opposition's momentum with a successful jump shot help YU regain the lead, 12-11, with 13:28 left to play in the opening period.

Illinois Wesleyan dominated the next several minutes of the contest by going on a 14-5 run to take a 25-17 advantage with 6:19 left to play in the period. But then, the Maccabees got hot from the 3-point line as three triples by Samet, and a successful shot from beyond the arc by Bardichev, propelled YU to a 29-25 lead with 4:21 to go before the break.

The Titans countered with a 7-2 blitz to go back in front, 32-31. Samet once again answered for the Macs with a shot from downtown to give YU a 34-32 benefit with 2:10 to go. Each team exchanged buckets after that.

With the closing seconds of the half ticking down, sophomore Nick Roper of the Titans launched the ball from near half court and buried a deep triple right at the buzzer to make it 37-36 in favor of Illinois Wesleyan at halftime.

The Titans opened the second half with 9-2 run to inflate its advantage to 46-38, with 17:14 remaining in regulation time. Zucker disrupted the opposition's momentum with a driving layup to pull YU to within six with 16:59 remaining. After each team exchanged baskets, Samet connected on layup attempt to pull the Macs to within four, at 48-44, with 15:11 to go.

Later in the second half, Samet buried another 3-point basket to shrink Illinois Wesleyan's lead to 55-52 with 10:23 to go.

After the Titans went on an 8-2 run to go up by seven, the Maccabees countered with a 7-2 rally, capped off by a layup from Samet, to cut IWU's benefit to 65-63 with 4:34 left to play.

Illinois Wesleyan scored the next five points to seemingly put the game out of reach for Yeshiva, with 2:57 remaining. However, Samet engineered an 8-2 run for the Maccabees, capped off by his off-balanced deep 3-point basket that cut YU's deficit to one, at 72-71, with 32 ticks left on the clock.

The Maccabees came up big on defense as junior Adi Markovich forced a jump ball that gave Yeshiva possession of the ball with 29 seconds left. However, Yeshiva could not capitalize on the go-ahead shot opportunity and Illinois Wesleyan gained control of the ball. Junior Ryan Sroka was intentionally fouled with 12 seconds left and he drained both free throws to inflate the home team's lead to 74-71.

Yeshiva had one more chance to tie the game but committed a turnover. Sroka was once again fouled on purpose with three ticks left and nailed two shots from the charity stripe to seal the game.

For the Maccabees, freshman Daniel Margusov netted six points, one assist, and forced a steal. Markovich tallied three assists, just as many rebounds, and a pair of steals. Junior Oren Betesh scored two points, while senior Ryan Bokor grabbed two rebounds and picked up a steal.

The Titans had three players reach double figures in scoring, led by 19 points, seven rebounds, and two assists from sophomore Harrison Wilmsen off the bench.

Yeshiva will battle Webster University in the consolation game of the Sikma Hall of Fame Invitational, on Sunday. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. eastern time. Illinois Wesleyan will take on University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, in the championship game, right after Yeshiva's game concludes.