New Jersey City University Athletics

Box Score BOX SCORE
GAME PROGRAM/NOTES

JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Junior guard MICHAEL MORRIS (Burlington, NJ/Burlington City) came off the bench to ignite a 17-1 second half run that opened up a double figure lead and the Gothic Knights hit 10 three-pointers in a 70-62 New Jersey Athletic Conference victory over red-hot Montclair State University on Wednesday night at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center on 'Coach Charlie Brown Court.'

NJCU keeps on rolling, improving to 12-2 overall and 3-1 in the conference while defeating Montclair (13-4, 3-2 NJAC) for the third time in four meetings over the past two years. In the 154^th meeting between the schools, Montclair, which leads the all-time series 87-67 since 1932-33, had its six-game winning streak snapped. MSU had won 11 of its last 12 games before the loss. NJCU is 7-0 at home this season and has won 18 consecutive contests on its home court.
 
“This was a big win. We made plays we needed to, especially defensively, and Mike Morris came off the bench to give us a big lift scoring wise,” said fifth-year head coach Marc Brown. “Mike hit some big shots—something I've been waiting for because he has that type of talent. There were lots of contributions from a number of guys today.”
 
Morris, whose previous best was 10 points, scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half and finished the game shooting 5-of-6 from the field and 3-for-4 from three-point distance in 20 minutes of action.
 
NJCU shot 58.3 percent in the second half (14-24) and 75 percent from three-point range, knocking down 6-of-8 triples in the period. Overall, the Gothic Knights buried half of their shots for the game (26-52, .500) and shot 55.6 percent beyond the arc, connecting on 10-of-18.
 
Junior swingman KAIHRIQUE IRICK (Teaneck, NJ/Teaneck) led NJCU in scoring and rebounding with 17 points (7-15 FG), eight rebounds and three assists while draining 3-of-4 three-point chances.
 
Junior swingman WALIK ALBRIGHT (Jersey City, NJ/Create Charter) added 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting (2-3 3FG), forced five steals and added three assists. He also did a solid job late in the game defending Montclair's top player, senior center Andrew August (Bridgewater, NJ/Bridgewater-Raritan).
 
“August has a quick first step and Walik was able to use his size and strength to control him a little late,” noted Brown. “That was key because they [MSU] goes as he goes.”
 
August, a First-Team All-NJAC pick last year, scored a game-high 22 points (6-14 FG) while playing every second of the 40 minutes for Montclair. He used his power to force fouls, and shot 10-of-11 from the line, including his first nine in a row. He added six rebounds and four assists.

“He's a good player and you have to give credit where it's due,” Albright said about defending August. “It's my second year playing him and he's gotten even better. We did a good job containing him and not letting anyone else get their [points]. We came out ready to play defense tonight. Our last game [Monday vs. John Jay] we came out lackadaisical but we came out with more energy [tonight] and got the win.”
 
NJCU also received a thorough effort from senior point guard KEITH WILLIAMS (Jersey City, NJ/Create Charter), who tallied 14 points (5-13 FG, 2-4 3FG) with six rebounds and five assists. Senior center MATT WASHINGTON (Hackensack, NJ/Paterson Catholic) added five boards and four points while defending August to start the night.
 
MSU freshman guard Dwight Bostic (Roselle, NJ/Abraham Clark) had 13 points and sizzled in the first half when he scored nine, hitting all three triples he attempted. Freshman guard Aaron Williams (West Orange, NJ/Jonathan Dayton) had 11 points (3-5 FG, 2-4 3FG) while sophomore forward Ordel Goldson (Hackettstown, NJ/Warren Hills) collected a game-high 10 rebounds—all on the defensive glass—with seven points, four steals and two blocks.

“Every NJAC game is critical; that's something I'm trying to preach to these guys,” Brown noted about the significance of  the win in the first home league game since December 3. “I still don't think we're coming out with enough energy but I'm happy with the win.”
 
In the first meeting between NJCU and Montclair since the Knights captured a record 12^th NJAC championship in Jersey City against the Red Hawks on February 25, 2011, the hosts led for most of the first half. NJCU, which posted its fourth consecutive home win over Montclair, jumped out to leads of 9-4 and 12-6 as Irick scored five of the club's first 10 points. He and Albright accounted for 11 of NJCU's first 14 points. Albright extended the cushion to 19-13 with a triple, as he scored his ninth point of the game.
 
August, who countered by contributing 11 off Montclair's first 18 points, trimmed the deficit to one (19-18) after Bostic hit a three, before Irick pushed the lead back to six (24-18) with a contested fast-break layup followed by a three-pointer for his 10^th point of the game. MSU cut it to 26-23 before Williams buried a three from the right wing with a hand in his face.
 
Trailing 29-23 with 3:33 left in the half, MSU score the final eight points of the period. Bostic sank a pair of threes (2:11 and 1:16), the latter which tied the game for the first time. With the first period winding down, August missed a jumper before junior forward Asad Faison (Scotch Plains, NJ/West Rowan (NC), who played at NJCU in 2009-10 before transferring this year to Montclair, beat the clock with an offensive rebound and putback as the Hawks went to the half leading 31-29. It was the visitor's first lead of the night.
 
MSU increased its scoring advantage to 15-4 over a span of 6:06 between the end of the first half and early second. After the clubs traded a pair of ties, MSU hit a three and August hit two from the line for a 38-33 margin.
 
But NJCU, led by Morris, took over from there, scoring 11 consecutive points before extending its surge to 17-1 and 19-3. A three by Williams and an Irick jumper tied it. Morris made a free throw that put NJCU ahead for the remainder of the night and his three at the 14:17 mark gave NJCU a 42-38. Williams' fast break basket off a Morris rebound and long assist made it 44-38 as NJCU capped the initial 11-0 outburst.

“In the first half I came out slow, but in the rhythm of the game I just caught the hot hand, so every time I was open I felt like I was going to make it,” Morris said about his career night. “My job is to come in off the bench and provide a spark and anything I can do to try to help my team I'm going to do it.”
 
After a foul shot by MSU, Morris connected on another three at the 12:13 mark for a 47-39 lead and his seventh point of the streak. Albright drained another three at 11:39 for a 50-39 advantage. Irick twice pushed the lead to a dozen (55-43) and 57-45, with the former basket a three in front of the Knights' bench after MSU had cut the deficit to single digits. Another three by Morris with 5:36 remaining made it 62-49 off a nice feed from Irick and a free throw by Washington gave the hosts a 14-point edge, 63-49, with 5:04 left—its largest lead of the night. NJCU led by no less than eight the rest of the game.

“We just have to continue playing hard with the same intensity,” Irick said about NJCU's upcoming schedule against two one-loss NJAC teams, Richard Stockton College and William Paterson University. “We can't come casual; we have to come ready and prepared.”
 
NJCU heads to Galloway, NJ on Saturday, January 14 for a 3 p.m. NJAC game against South Division leader Richard Stockton College (9-6, 3-1 NJAC). Montclair heads south as well for a date with Rutgers University-Camden at the same time.