Prior to the start of the season, point guard Kiersten Holgash '08 said one of the women's basketball team's goals would be to "play a solid 40-minute game." But while the Judges have been able to accomplish that goal for the most part so far this season, they were unable to do so in their first University Athletic Association game against No. 4 New York University last Saturday.After taking a 10-point lead early in the second half, the Judges crumbled under the Violets' defensive effort, hitting just five of 26 shots in the second half in a 57-47 loss that snapped their seven-game winning streak and dropped their record to 9-3 on the season.

"In the second half NYU's defensive [pressure] stepped up a lot and it caused a lot of problems for us and our offense," Holgash said.

Guard Jamie Capra '08 led the Judges with 16 points and eight rebounds in the game, but in the end it was not enough to upset the Violets, who moved to 11-0 on the season.

"The first half was definitely our better half," forward Amber Strodthoff '11 said. "We've proven to ourselves we can beat them, [but] we just couldn't seal the deal. The competition in the UAA-it's like a whole other season."

Brandeis led the Violets 24-18 at halftime and took a 31-21 lead with 15:41 left on a layup by rookie forward Amber Strodthoff '11. The Violets opened the second half with four missed three-pointers, and the Judges corralled every defensive rebound during that stretch.

But despite the 10-point advantage, players knew that the Violets, who had not lost in front of the home crowd since February 19, 2006, would not let the Judges spoil the bid for their 27th straight home victory.

"The 10-point lead really sparked everyone's energy, [but] we knew they weren't going to come out in the second half and relax," Holgash said. "The way we handled the pressure was the main reason why the first half and the second half was such a dramatic difference."

After Strodthoff's jump shot gave the Judges a 35-26 lead with 13:22 remaining, the Violets scored the next eight points of the game, four of which came at the free throw line. Senior All-American forward Jessica McEntee's two free throws cut Brandeis' lead to 35-34 with 11:04 remaining.

In the last 10 minutes, the Violets stepped up their defensive intensity and slowly took control of the game. Brandeis took a three-point lead on three separate occasions, but the Violets held the Judges to just one field goal in the final 10 minutes and took the lead for good with 4:41 remaining on a layup by rookie guard Bianca Storts.

"With about 10 minutes left, you could just feel the momentum change- that's something that's really evident in a basketball game," Capra said. "The only thing you could try to do is stop the bleeding. They turned it up a notch and we weren't ready for it."

Whenever the Judges got close, it was McEntee who thwarted their run.

The senior all-American finished with 28 points and 15 rebounds, including nine points in the final 10 minutes. No other NYU player scored more than seven points.

"When you go against a great player like that, it's not just one person's responsibility. It's a team effort," Holgash said. "We followed our game plan, but [McEntee's] jump shot was really on. Her ability to shoot inside and out makes her a great player."

Though the Judges ultimately fell, players were encouraged that the team competed hard against the No. 4 team in the nation.

"It's competition I don't think we've seen since the beginning of the season in our Tip-Off Tournament," Strodthoff said. "I'm really excited to play them again on our home court."

Earlier in the week, Brandeis closed their non-conference season with two blowout wins, defeating Husson College 86-46 Jan. 5 and Simmons College 77-32 last Wednesday.

The Judges continue their UAA play Friday at Carnegie Mellon University at 6 p.m. and Sunday at Rochester University at 2 p.m.