New Jersey City University Athletics

 

WEST HEMPSTEAD, NY…New Jersey City University had five players reach double figures, and had a 22-2 advantage in second chance points thanks to a 26-5 margin in offensive rebounds as the Gothic Knights defeated Briarcliffe College (NY), 84-73, in a non-conference men’s basketball game on Tuesday at the Island Garden Basketball Center.

 

NJCU (2-1) wins its second straight and leads the all-time series, 4-0. Briarcliffe falls to 1-2. NJCU had a 48-28 margin in rebounding and a decisive 33-5 difference in bench scoring.

 

Junior All-America guard DANA JOHN (Hillside, NJ/Pocono Mountain East (Pa.) had a team-high 17 points (5-18 FG), with six rebounds, four assists and four steals in 35 minutes to increase his career scoring total to 899, with 154 three pointers—six shy of matching Mark Washington’s career school record. Freshman forward DEREK MILLER (Newark, NJ/East Side) contributed 15 points (7-12 FG) in 18 reserve minutes.

 

Senior power forward MARQUES HILL (Hillside, NJ/Hillside) tallied 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting and nine rebounds, and freshman forward TOM McDERMOTT (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) chalked up a career-high 14 points (5-11 FG) and eight rebounds—six offensive—in 20 reserve minutes.

 

Sophomore guard BRUCE RICE (Blackwood, NJ/Triton Regional) contributed 10 points (4-6 FG) and six rebounds, while senior point guard SHY MARTINEZ (Union City, NJ/Union Hill) added six points, six assists, five rebounds and four steals.

 

In defeat, the Seahawks received an outstanding performance from freshman Nikita Davis who scored 37 points of 10-of-16 shooting (3-7 3 FG) and was 14-of-16 from the line. He added eight defensive rebounds, three assists and three steals in 37 minutes. The 37 points were the most by an NJCU opponent since Montclair State University’s Gian Paul Gonzalez scored 40 on November 22, 2005.

 

Also for BC, freshman Josh Smith had 13 points (5-8 FG) and four assists but committed 11 of the teams’ 33 turnovers. Freshman Danny Napolitano had nine points and sophomore Marcel Seymore finished with five assists.

 

While Briarcliffe held several first half leads, none were more than three points, and NJCU seized the lead for good with 6:57 left in the first half on a McDermott layup. NJCU’s advantage grew to 34-27 following a John three-pointer, and was 36-29 after a Rice tip-in, before NJCU went to the half leading, 38-32.

 

The NJCU lead swelled to 11 points, 47-36 on a Rice layup with 17:52 left, and a John jumper made it a 12-point, 57-45 edge with 12:52 on the clock. BC rallied on a Davis three-point play and another triple to pull within four, 57-53. The Seahawks stayed within a four-point striking distance at several junctures, including 63-59 with 7:34 left before John nailed another three. A jumper by Smith made it a six-point deficit with 2:25 remaining, 72-66. But NJCU’s top two scoring freshman scored key back-to-back buckets as McDermott had an offensive rebound and putback for a 74-66 mark with 1:57 left and Miller canned a basket with 1:30 remaining for a 10-point cushion, as NJCU prevailed by 11.

 

There were 56 combined turnovers in the game—33 by BC. NJCU shot only 3-of-19 from three-point range overall (.158) and won by double figures despite BC making 51.1 percent of its shots (23-45), 6-of-12 from three-point territory, and 80.8 percent from the line (21-26). NJCU scored 38 of its 84 points in the paint.

 

NJCU returns to action on Monday, November 26 at 7 p.m. with a non-conference road game against Lycoming College in Williamsport, PA.