From NYU Athletics

The New York University men's basketball team opened its 2017-18 campaign with an 80-77 victory over the College of Mount Saint Vincent in the opening round of the NYU Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday, November 18, at the Sportsplex in Manhattan.  

Despite trailing by as many as 12 in the first half and by four, 40-36, at halftime, the Violets (1-0) kept plugging away and finally caught the Dolphins (0-1) when Dom Cristiano's  layup gave NYU a 52-51 lead with 12-39 left.

"We got off to a shaky start and it took us a while to get into the flow," said Head Coach Joe Nesci. "We did a much better job in the second half."

The game remained tight, with neither team leading by more than six points the rest of the way.

A huge highlight came with 7:20 remaining when senior captain Ross Udine fed junior transfer Ethan Feldman for a jumper. Not only did the assist and basket tie the score at 65-65, but it also gave Udine NYU's all-time assists record. It was number 438 of his career, passing Roosevelt Smith '92.

"I recruited Roosevelt Smith when I was an assistant here, and for Ross to achieve the record is something special," Nesci said. "Ross really is a great guard."

Udine finished with a game-high 10 assists, while Feldman, making his NYU debut, scored a game-high 26 points. He shot 9-of-10 from field, including 4-of-5 from three-point range, with 17 of his points coming in the first half.

"Great team effort all-around," Nesci concluded. "Some very impressive performances."

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

- Cameron Moore contributed 17 points, five rebounds, two blocks, and two steals.

- Cristiano finished with 10 points in his NYU debut, all coming in the second half.

- Jimmy Martinelli collected a team-high 10 rebounds to go with five points and six assists.

- The Violets shot 50% for the game (27-of-54) after a blistering 62.5% (15-of-24) in the second half.