Wingen Wins 300th at CMU as Men’s Basketball Defeats NYU, 78-72

(NEW YORK, N.Y.) - The Carnegie Mellon University men's basketball team improved to 3-0 in University Athletic Association (UAA) play with a 78-72 win at New York University on Sunday, January 15. The win marked head coach Tony Wingen's 300th at the helm of the Tartans. Carnegie Mellon is now 9-5 overall while NYU moves to 6-7, 1-2.

Senior Chris Shkil (Mentor, Ohio/Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin) led the Tartans tying a season-best with 20 points. The senior added 10 rebounds to record his fourth double-double this season. Junior Ryan Maha (West Mifflin, Pa.) scored 18 in the win for the Tartans who shot 43.5% from the floor. Senior Jack Serbin (New Albany, Ohio) grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, as the Tartans controlled the glass as a team hauling down 43 rebounds to the Violets' 33. Freshman Colin McNeil (Ringoes, N.J./Hunterdon Central Regional) handed out a career-best six assists for the Tartans.

NYU was led by Ross Udine's 28 points while Ted Georgiadis and Joe Timmes each added 13. The Violets shot 44.3% from the floor.

Carnegie Mellon held the lead the entire first half with the score being tied on three occasions. The Tartans used back-to-back three-point baskets by Maha and freshman Zach Howarth (Freehold, N.J./St. John Vianney) to grab their largest lead of the half at 32-23 with four minutes to play. Three minutes later, the visitor's matched their largest lead following a fast break dunk by sophomore Patrick Ehland (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon) and took a 38-31 advantage into the locker room.

The Tartans shot 48.5% (16-33) from the floor in the first frame while the Violets shot 43.8% (14-32). Carnegie Mellon was led by Maha's eight first-half points with Howarth tallying seven.

NYU started the second half scoring the first eight points and grabbed its first lead of the game, 39-38, at the 18:21 mark. On the Tartans ensuing possession, Maha connected on a jumper to give the lead back to the Tartans, as they scored six straight to extend the lead to 44-39. The Violets responded with a 12-1 run over the next five minutes and took their largest lead at 51-45. Carnegie Mellon answered with a 14-2 run which ended with back-to-back traditional three-point plays by Shkil that made the score 59-53 with eight minutes to play.

The Violets once again went on a run, this time a 12-3 scamper that put the lead back into the hands of the home team. With NYU leading 65-62, Carnegie Mellon scored 10 unanswered points over the next three-and-a-half minutes to lead 72-65 with 1:10 to play. The Tartans continued to hold the lead in the final minute with Howarth connecting on two foul shots in the closing seconds to seal the win.

The Tartans will host third-ranked University of Rochester (13-1, 2-1) on Friday, January 20. Tip is set for 8:00 p.m. on the hardwood at Skibo Gymnasium.