New Jersey City University Athletics

Box Score BOX SCORE
GAME PROGRAM/NOTES

JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | New Jersey City University and John Jay College combined for 27 first half points and struggled from the field all night, but John Jay used a pair of second half runs and accurate late free throw shooting to outlast NJCU, 60-50, in a non-conference women's basketball game on Monday night on “Coach Charlie Brown Court” at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center. There were 15 lead chances and six ties in the contest.
 
The loss drops NJCU to 0-5 on the season and 0-3 at home. John Jay improved to 2-3 overall. NJCU leads the all-time series, 9-6.
 
NJCU shot just 29.0 percent for the game (20-69) with John Jay attempting three fewer shots and made 30.3 percent (20-66). The Bloodhounds converted 16-of-22 foul shots (.727), including 7-of-8 from the line in the final 30 seconds to seal the win.  NJCU made 8-of-16 from the line (.500).
 
JJC freshman forward Tyana Hale (Brooklyn, NY/Abraham Lincoln) registered a double-double with game highs of 24 points (8-20 FG, 1-7 3FG), including 7-of-8 from the line, 11 defensive rebounds, five assists and four steals in 39 minutes. Sophomore forward Jamecia Forsythe (Brooklyn, NY/James Madison) tallied 13 rebounds, nine points and six of John Jay's 11 total blocked shots.
 
In defeat, sophomore forward ALNISA HERNAIZ (Irvington, NJ/Irvington)  totaled a career-high 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting, with six rebounds in 29 minutes. Junior forward DELIA CHERNEZ (Union City, NJ/Union City) grabbed 10 rebounds (eight defensive) but didn't score (0-7 FG).
 
Rookie point guard LUISA MONTALVO (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) finished with 11 points (3-8 FG) and junior guard GABRIELLE RIVERA (Teaneck, NJ/Saint Joseph of the Palisades) provided 10 points on 5-of-14 shooting. Freshman JADE MEDLEY (Newark, NJ/Hudson Catholic), who was NJCU's top women's volleyball player in the fall, had her most extended playing time of her collegiate basketball career, collecting career highs of nine points (4-10 FG), eight rebounds and two blocked shots.
 
Also for John Jay, sophomore forward Elizabeth Newton (Bronx, NY/Bronx HS of Music) chipped in 10 rebounds, seven points (2-15 FG), four steals and three blocks. Freshman guard Aneska Tejada (Bronx, NY/Martin Luther King) had seven points and seven rebounds.
 
In a lackluster shooting first half for both schools, John Jay shot just 17.6 percent (6-34) and 1-of-11 from three-point range (.091) while NJCU wasn't much better, making 6-of-30 (.200). Each team had more first half turnovers (15) than points. John Jay shot just 2-of-20 in the first 12 minutes of the game and NJCU was 2-for-17 until a layup by Hernaiz made it 6-4 with 8:53 left in the period.
 
After four first period ties, John Jay gained a 14-12 lead on a jumper with 3:23 left by Forsythe. The Bloodhounds held a 14-13 lead at halftime.
 
Early in the second half, NJCU was able to reclaim the lead and went ahead 25-20 on a jumper by Medley, and 27-22 with 13:54 to go on a jumper in the lane by Hernaiz.
 
John Jay used a 13-2 run capped by seven consecutive points by Hale to claim a 35-29 lead with 10:15 left. NJCU whittled the lead down and took a 38-37 lead on a three-pointer by Medley at the end of an 8-2 spurt. Another three by Montalvo with 5:28 left and a jumper by Medley with 4:32 to play followed by a nice layup by sophomore forward MARIA SUAREZ (Cliffside Park, NJ/Cliffside Park) off a Montalvo feed made it a 45-42 lead at the 4:01 mark.
 
But late shooting woes again doomed NJCU. John Jay held the Knights to five free throws in the final four minutes and NJCU missed its final eight shots of the night.  
 
Meanwhile, the Bloodhounds reeled off a 14-1 run and after a pair of Newton free throws, Hale turned a defensive carom into a fast break basket that put the Bloodhounds back on top, 46-45 with 3:21 left. Junior guard Shantel Rodriguez (Rio Piedra, Puerto Rico/Franklin D. Roosevelt), who finished with seven points, scored two on a fast break layup from Hale with 2:54 left, before junior guard Danielle Eagan (New York, NY/A. Phillip Randolph), who made just one of her first eight shots, came through when it mattered with a three-pointer that made it 51-45 with 2:26 to play. Another Rodriguez basket from Hale made it a seven-point lead, 53-46 with 1:22 left before John Jay sank seven late foul shots to seal the win.
 
NJCU will try to end its nine-game losing streak when it hosts the College of New Rochelle in a non-conference  game on Wednesday, December 7 at 6 p.m. John Jay hosts FDU-Florham on December 9 at 5 p.m. in New York, NY.