Men fall to York College in ECAC semi finals

The NYU men's basketball team found itself in yet another tight game on Saturday in the ECAC Division III Metropolitan Tournament semifinals. Once again, the Violets were unable to execute defensively down the stretch, and were outscored 11-2 in the last 3:43 against York College en-route to a 68-61 loss, ending their up-and-down season.

The second-seeded Violets (17-10) led the third-seeded Cardinals (23-7) by a score of 57-53 with 5:04 remaining, but York tied the game at 57 until freshman forward Carl Yaffe, who led NYU with 17 points, converted a back door cut into a layup to give the Violets their last lead of the game, 59-57. From then on, however, the Violets failed to get stops when they needed them most and had difficulty getting to the basket.

Marcel Esonwune recorded five block shots for the Cardinals and had two big ones toward the end of the game.

"He was one of the better shot blockers we faced all year and he got to us down the stretch," said senior forward Keith Jensen, who tallied nine points in his final collegiate game.

After a heartbreaking loss last weekend against Brandeis University, which ended NYU's chances at making the NCAA Tournament, the Violets were disappointed to be playing in the ECAC.

"Once we didn't make the tournament everyone was very down and the ECAC just didn't mean that much," Jensen said.

Jensen finished his career with over 1,000 points that placed him on NYU's Top 25 scoring list. The senior never made the NCAA Tournament, but he will remember the good times.

"Obviously being so close to making the tournament a couple of years hurts, but despite that, it was very enjoyable for the most part," Jensen said.
NYU competed in the last four ECAC Metro Tournaments and lost the championship by two points to Lehman College last season. NYU's last ECAC title came in 2007.
Fifth-seeded Baruch College won the tournament on Sunday, defeating York College 93-70.

Despite the unsuccessful tournament, NYU was much better than they were last year, winning three more games in their conference. They struggled at times with their rebounding. York out-rebounded NYU by a 46-35 margin. The Violets also struggled defensively down the stretch, holding only one team to under 60 points in their last eight games.

Next season's team shows lots of promise. NYU has size down low with sophomore center Andy Stein, who has become a legitimate force in the paint, averaging a career high 10.6 points per game this season. Team defense must improve as well, and junior guard Derek Becker is one of the better lock down defenders in the UAA.

Junior forward/center Richie Polan has developed an inside game to go along with his outside arsenal, and should add versatility to the Violets' attack.
Yaffe and fellow freshman guard Kyle Stockmal will be even better next season after having played a season of college basketball.

While it would have been nice for Jensen and the other seniors to end their careers on a high note, look for the Violets to make a run at the more prestigious NCAA Tournament next season.