Women's Hoops Cruise; Men's Hoops Lose

BROOKLYN, NY-   The NYU-Poly basketball teams hosted Bard College Saturday in Skyline Conference action.  In the women's game, the Lady Jays were paced by senior Kristin Leitheuser's (Pleasant Valley, NY) 24 points en route to a comfortable 76-32 win. In the night cap, the NYU-Poly men's basketball team rallied from a 12 point deficit to take a brief 42-40 lead with just under 13 minutes to play, but Bard's 11 three-pointers proved the difference in their 75-66 victory.

In the women's contest, Leitheuser and junior Margaux Pickell (Howell, NJ), who had yet another double-double with 23 points and 13 boards, paced the Lady Jays to a 33-20 halftime lead. But, it was the second half, where NYU-Poly shot 52% from the field and committed just four turnovers en route to a 42-13 margin. They also held Bard to just 24% shooting while forcing 17 of the 26 total turnovers in the second half.

All eight players found their way into the scoring column, as sophomore Madelyn Medina (Brooklyn, NY) had two points, while Desiree Smith (San Jose, CA) added four points for the Lady Jays.

In the men's game, Bard jumped out to an 11-2 lead and held a 33-28 halftime lead. But, the second half saw NYU-Poly chip away at the lead thanks to the solid inside play of senior Jason Buckner (Littleton, CO) and Alex Westphal (Port Washington, WI) and eventually tie the game at 40-40 at the 14:23 mark.  Bard, which was 11-for-16 from behind the arc, answered as Yonah Greenstein had a pair of threes and Matt Shubert added another to help Bard regain the lead and hold on down the stretch.

Buckner recorded a double-double, as he led NYU-Poly with 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Westphal added 14 points and seven boards. NYU-Poly held a distinct advantage in the paint, outscoring the Raptors 42-30. But the offense outside the paint wasn't as hot, as the NYU-Poly guards combined for just 24 points to Bard's 45.

Both teams return to action Tuesday as they travel to Medgar Evers for a non-league contest. The women play at 6:00pm followed by the men at 8:00.