This weekend’s NYU basketball action was the tale of two teams, as the men came out victorious and the women had to return to the drawing board.

Ranked seventh in the nation by the NCAA, the women’s team began their road trip with confidence, but realized quickly that their opponent, Carnegie Mellon University, was a worthy adversary. Senior forward Megan Dawe was the high scorer for the night, with 17 points. She also added six rebounds. The Violets had a grasp on the lead before the end of the first quarter thanks to junior guard Kaitlyn Read, who scored seven straight points. But it was during the second quarter that the Tartans took the lead and held tightly to their advantage for the rest of the game. In the end, it wasn’t that close, as the Violets suffered their second-largest loss of the season, 70-57.

Sunday’s game proved to be a closer for the women’s team. The last time the Violets faced Case Western Reserve, the Violets easily handled them, winning by a comfortable margin of 82-70. However, this battle against the Spartans didn’t quite have the same result. The first quarter ended with a five point lead for the Violets, after a successful layup by Dawe. However the Violets lost their lead in the second quarter, trailing 39-34 at halftime. Things wouldn’t change much, even though the Violets narrowed the lead in the second half, and they dropped their second straight 67-65.

The men’s team left the court with a cheerier disposition on Friday, as they managed to escape with a 70-67 victory over Carnegie Mellon, improving their UAA standing and overall record. The Violets had a shaky start, struggling to gain an edge, and trailed 43-31 at halftime. Senior guard Max Ralby looked to his teammates to recover from the inconsistent first 20 minutes.

“Road games in the UAA are always tough. I think we came out a little flat and early foul trouble hurt us in the first half,” Ralby said.

But the 12 point deficit wasn’t enough to keep the Violets down. The second half was a turning point, as the Violets slowly but surely crept back into the game. The Violets finally charged ahead into the lead late, going on to win 70-67. Sophomore Ross Udine hoped the victory would be a learning experience for the team.

“We fell behind early cause we just didn’t come out with enough energy and they did,” Udine said. “And I’d like to see us come out with more assertiveness on the defensive end so we don’t fall behind early.”

The men’s team used their momentum from Friday to clinch yet another win against Case Western, but the Spartans didn’t make it an easy victory for the Violets. Unlike Friday’s game, the Violets went into the half with a six point lead. In the second half, the Violets’ lead started to wane, but they quickly recovered with the aid of Ralby’s layup and steal, extending the Violet lead to 65-56 over the Spartans. The Spartans put up a fight, with Spartan Javier Alvarez giving his team a 74-71 lead splitting a set of free throws. But NYU rallied back with two free throws from Udine, and after a potential Spartans game-winner missed, the Violets survived 80-79.

The teams will continue their pattern of traveling together next weekend, as they square off against Emory University on Friday and the University of Rochester on Sunday.

A version of this article appeared in the Feb. 8 print edition. Email Suhana Jagadesan at [email protected].