Zakheim nets career-high 15, but men drop UAA opener at #4 NYU, 101-85

NEW YORK N.Y. – The Brandeis University men's basketball team opened its 2025 University Athletic Association schedule today with a road game at fourth-ranked NYU. The Judges cut a 25-point deficit in half, but the Violets' strong defensive first half was enough to defeat the Judges, 101-85.

TEAM RECORDS

• Brandeis, 9-3, 0-1 UAA.
• NYU, 12-0, 1-0 UAA, ranked #4 in Division III by D3hoops.com.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Judges got off to a quick start, taking an early 8-4 lead after hitting their first two 3-pointers of the contest.
• Unfortunately, Brandeis struggled from beyond the arc for the rest of the first half, missing their next eight attempts from downtown.
• Meanwhile, NYU shot lights out from the field in the first 20 minutes, connecting on 59.3% overall (19-32). They also outrebounded the Judges, 24-11, as they took a 53-33 lead at the break.
• NYU had three players score in double figures in the first half, while Brandeis was paced by senior Toby Harris (Durham, N.C./Durham Academy) with 11 points.
• The Violets scored the first five points of the second half to extend their lead to 25, but Brandeis made a push with an 12-2 run over a stretch of just over four minutes.
• The Judges found their touch from 3-point range, with grad student Aedan Using (Old Lyme, Conn./Old Lyme) dialing long distance at the 16:50 mark and hitting a free throw on the next possession to get Brandeis within 15 points at 60-45 with 16:22 elapsed.
• The Violets answered with the next four points to get back to a 19-point lead. They took their largest lead again at 25 points with 9:28 left in the game on a pair of free throws.
• Brandeis made one last push to get back into the game thanks to first-year Alex Zakheim (Bergenfield, N.J./Perkiomen, Pa.), who scored eight points in less than two minutes. It was part of a 16-4 run that got the Judges within 88-76 on a pair of Ethan Edwards (Brooklyn, N.Y./Woodstock Acad.) free throws with 5:17 left in the game.
• NYU answered with a traditional three-point play by Tristan How and a 3-pointer from Chuma Oyigbo that pushed the Violet lead back to 18 points and shut the door on the comeback.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• The Judges were led by Harris, who scored 25 points on 10-of-16 from the field, 4-of-6 from 3-point range and 1-of-1 from the line. He also led Brandeis with five rebounds.
• Zakheim netted a career-high 15 points off the bench, hitting 6-of-8 from the field, 1-of-3 from deep and 2-of-3 from the line. He scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half.
• Edwards added 14 points and Using finished with 12 points, a team-high six assists, two steals and two blocked shots.
• After their tough-shooting first half, the Judges connected on 69.2% from the floor in the second (18-26), including 66.7% from downtown (8-12).
• NYU had three players finish in double digits in scoring, as How and Brock Susko each scored 26 points and Hampton Sanders had 25.
• How also led all players with 13 rebounds, as NYU owned the boards, 38-22, including 11-5 on the offensive glass. The hosts had a 16-5 advantage in second-chance points.
• In addition shooting 56.7% from the field overall (34-60), the Violets outshot Brandeis from the line, 88.9% to 54.2%, outscoring the Judges, 24-13, despite only taking three more shots from the charity stripe.

UP NEXT

• The Judges will play their first home UAA game of the season on Friday evening, January 17^th, against the University of Rochester at 5:30 p.m. The #4 Violets will battle #3-ranked Emory at the same time.