New Jersey City University Athletics

Box Score BOX SCORE
GAME PROGRAM/NOTES

JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Twice New Jersey City University was staring at an upset loss, and twice rallied to prevent it. The Gothic Knights trailed 59-52 before scoring the final seven points of regulation to force overtime. Then after Brooklyn College jumped out to a six-point lead in the extra session, NJCU answered with a 9-0 run, highlighted by an electric, momentum-swinging three-point play by unheralded rookie guard DAVID COLE (Avenel, NJ/Colonia), who followed the play by drawing a charge, as the Knights survived, 70-68, in a non-conference men's basketball battle on Monday night at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center on 'Coach Charlie Brown Court.'
 
NJCU, playing its final non-conference game of the regular season, improved to 14-4 overall and 9-1 at home this season, while winning for the 20^th time in its last 21 home court contests. Brooklyn fell to 10-6 with the loss. The all-time series is the same as NJCU's current record; since first meeting in 1963, the Knights lead Brooklyn, 14-4.
 
Junior swingman KAIHRIQUE IRICK (Teaneck, NJ/Teaneck) was NJCU's top scorer for the ninth time this year, netting a game-best 19 points on 7-of-17 shooting (5-7 FT) and generated his first career double-double, finishing with a game-high 11 rebounds (eight defensive) in 35 minutes.
 
Junior guard MICHAEL MORRIS (Burlington, NJ/Burlington City) was the only other NJCU player in double figures, adding 10 points (3-6 FG), including 2-of-3 from three-point range. Junior swingman WALIK ALBRIGHT (Jersey City, NJ/Create Charter) failed to score in double figures for only the third time this season, but before fouling out in 29 minutes of action, he produced a career-high seven assists, adding six rebounds and four points.
 
Junior point guard NAADIR WILLIAMS (Newark, NJ/Weequahic) came off the bench to score eight points in 19 minutes, shooting 2-of-3, including a key three-pointer with 1:30 left in regulation that made it a two-point game, 59-57.
 
Senior point guard KEITH WILLIAMS (Jersey City, NJ/Create Charter) chipped in five points, five rebounds, five assists and four steals in 40 minutes, and grabbed a crucial offensive rebound with 3.8 seconds left in overtime that allowed NJCU to ice it. Junior center DAVID JONES (Millville, NJ/Cumberland Regional) had seven points (2-3 FG, 3-3 FT) while freshman forward JAQUAN COOK (New Brunswick, NJ/New Brunswick) contributed to the win with six points and six rebounds off the bench. Cole played just nine minutes, but his lone three points proved to be perhaps the biggest play of the night.
 
“He has a lot of heart and when I recruited him I saw the energy he brings to the game,” noted fifth-year head coach Marc Brown about DAVID COLE. “He's not scared and he's solid offensively and defensively. He plays hard every second he's out there on the floor.”
 
Senior guard Amil John (Brooklyn, NY/South Shore) poured in a game-high 26 points on 8-of-17 shooting, while converting 10-of-13 from the line, with eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in 43 minutes.
 
Senior guard Tyshawn Russell (Jamaica, NY/Holy Cross) added 15 points (4-13 FG, 7-10 FT) with seven rebounds and four steals in 39 minutes before fouling out in overtime. Junior forward Kavon Baker (Brooklyn, NY/Midwood) added 12 points (3-9 FG, 5-5 FT) and three steals in 44 minutes. The rest of the team combined to score 15 points.
 
Brown commended both Cole and Cook for their play in the clutch. “Our young guys brought some energy to the game, specifically Cole and Cook, both offensively and defensively. When I put them in, that was the key.”

NJCU shot 50 percent in the first period (13-26) and overtime (2-4) and 42.4 percent for the night (25-59) and limited the Bulldogs to 35.1 percent accuracy (20-57). But BC took advantage of its trips to the line, shooting 26-of-34 (.765) from the stripe. NJCU out-rebounded the visitors 47-31 and turned 12 offensive rebounds into a 17-3 margin in second chance scoring.
 
In a game with 12 ties and eight lead changes, NJCU never led by more than five points, owning a 24-19 lead when NAADIR WILLIAMS sank a three with 6:09 left in the first half. After Brooklyn forced the fifth tie of the opening 20 minutes, baskets by Cook and Irick in the final minute put NJCU in front before an offensive rebound and putback by Russell at the buzzer made it a 32-30 game at the break.
 
NJCU committed eight turnovers in the first 4:48 of regulation but settled down, finishing the game with 19 giveaways; more than Brown is happy with, but fewer than 20+ in a game for the first time in the Knights' last four outings.
 
“It's been the same thing every game—too many turnovers and we're struggling defensively containing people. “We have good size but our starting group is also our most porous laterally of our defensive teams. We have quickness when we have our smaller matchups and it's something we are going to have to look at. I told the guys we're not playing well and I'm going to play guys who play hard.”
 
In the second half, NJCU claimed a five-point lead coming out of the locker room, 36-31 before an eight-point swing by Brooklyn forced a 36-36 tie. The schools continued to play see-saw basketball, with neither side able to gain a lead of more than three until Irick made it 47-43 with 9:23 left and Morris buried a trey with 8:23 to play for a 50-46 edge.
 
Brooklyn uncorked a 13-2 run to seemingly take control of the game when Russell hit a foul shot that made it 59-52 with 4:51 left. Junior forward Filipp Bochkov (Moscow, Russia/Xaverian) rolled off a screen for two of his seven points with  6:45 remaining and after Irick cut the deficit to 53-52, John and Russell each converted layups for a 57-52 margin, leading up to a pair of Russell foul shots. NJCU also had trouble escaping the Bulldogs' full-court press and with 4:51 left, Albright, perhaps NJCU's most clutch player in late moments this season, fouled out.
 
Irick made it a 59-54 game with 4:21 to play. NJCU missed its next two shots but its defense prevented BC from scoring on its next three possessions and NAADIR WILLIAMS banked in a straight-away three with 1:30 left, making it 59-57. BC missed its next shot and Jones grabbed the rebound. He entered the game just 10-of-18 from the line this season, but calmly sank two foul shots with 40.7 seconds left to tie it at 59-59.
 
Brooklyn had a chance to go ahead again but airballed a shot with 10 seconds remaining. A potential winning shot by KEITH WILLIAMS rimmed out as time expired.
 
Just 30 seconds into overtime, Baker converted a three-point play and with 3:27 left in the extra session, John picked off a steal in NJCU's zone and jammed home a fast-break dunk for a 65-59 advantage. Irick hit a pair from the line to make it 65-61 (3:13). After John missed a jumper, KEITH WILLIAMS grabbed the rebound and fed Cole, who darted down court, hitting an amazing layup while falling to the court. He drew a foul on the play and converted a free throw to cut the Brooklyn lead to one, 65-64.
 
If that play energized the Knights, Cole's next would swing momentum back to NJCU, as he drew an offensive foul on Russell with 2:40 left, who fouled out of the game. Irick would later hit two foul shots with 2:38 remaining as NJCU moved back in front, 66-65 and KEITH WILLIAMS claimed a steal with 1:33 left to give NJCU back possession, tipping a pass away from Baker. NAADIR WILLIAMS capitalized on the giveaway, pulling up for a mid-range jumper from the left baseline for a 68-65 margin.
 
Those three points were important because NJCU was issued a technical foul with 33.9 to play after a player called a timeout with none remaining. John hit one foul shot, making it 68-66. NJCU burned clock before Cole missed a three-pointer with eight seconds left. But KEITH WILLIAMS sprinted away with the offensive rebound, was fouled, and sank both from the line to make it a two-possession, 70-66 lead. BC hit a pair from the line with 2.6 seconds left to trim NJCU's lead to two but the inbounds pass went to Cole, and he eluded the Brooklyn defenders trying to foul him, running out the clock.
 
NJCU, now 4-3 in the New Jersey Athletic Conference, faces Rutgers-Newark in the first of two meetings, on Wednesday, January 25 at 8 p.m. at the Golden Dome in Newark. Brooklyn travels to John Jay College that night for a 7 p.m. CUNYAC game.