New Jersey City University Athletics

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WAYNE, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Junior guard MICHAEL MORRIS (Burlington, NJ/Burlington City) sank three foul shots with one second left in regulation to force overtime after New Jersey City University had fallen behind by 10 points with 2:42 left, but #17 ranked William Paterson University scored the final seven points of the extra period and outlasted the Gothic Knights, 85-79, in a New Jersey Athletic Conference men's basketball game on Saturday at the WPU Rec Center.
 
NJCU, needing a win to clinch a berth in the NJAC Tournament and the No. 2 seed in the NJAC North Division, had its three-game winning streak snapped and fell to 17-6 overall and 7-5 in the NJAC with one regular season game remaining on Wednesday, February 15 at home against Rutgers-Newark.
 
Meanwhile, WPU, which won the first meeting between the schools in Jersey City on January 18 (72-58), swept the season series and concluded its NJAC schedule with an 11-2 record. The Pioneers won their fifth straight and improved to 21-3 on the season and 13-1 at home. WPU had clinched the NJAC North Division title prior to the game but can still win the league's overall regular season title if NJAC South leading Richard Stockton College loses one of its final two games.
 
WPU entered the game ranked #17 by D3hoops.com and second in the NCAA Division III Atlantic Region. NJCU, fifth in the Atlantic Region, still leads the all-time series, 75-63, after 138 meetings.
 
NJCU shot 50 percent for the game (26-52) and limited the Pioneers to 43.5 percent shooting (27-62), including 30.8 percent in the first half (8-26) as the Knights built a 12-point advantage and led by 11 at the intermission, 36-25. But NJCU was hindered by a season-high 25 turnovers.
 
In defeat, five players scored in double figures for the Knights, led by junior swingman KAIHRIQUE IRICK (Teaneck, NJ/Teaneck) with 19 points (7-13 FG), six rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks to overcome six turnovers. It was his 13^th time leading the club in scoring.
 
Junior swingman WALIK ALBRIGHT (Jersey City, NJ/Create Charter) eclipsed the 750-point mark for his career (755), scoring 10 in the first half, before finishing with 15 points (4-10 FG, 7-11 FT), six rebounds, four assists and two blocks in just under 40 minutes.
 
Senior center MATT WASHINGTON (Hackensack, NJ/Paterson Catholic) notched his second double-double of the season with 13 points (3-5 FG) and a game-best 10 rebounds with two blocks and Morris chipped in 11 points, making 2-of-3 from the field and all six foul shots, including the three late attempts to force overtime. Senior point guard KEITH WILLIAMS (Jersey City, NJ/Create Charter) collected 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting, but committed five turnovers versus  two assists.
 
Junior guard Rick DeStefano (Marlboro, NJ/Marlboro) was not a factor in the first meeting of the year, scoring just seven points on 1-of-3 shooting (four FTs), but was the biggest reason the Pioneers were in position to win the game in the second half. He scored a game-high 23 points, shooting 6-of-10—with all shots from three-point distance—and added four steals and three assists in 39 minutes. He had 18 in regulation including 12 in the second half, before converting on 4-of-5 foul shots in OT.
 
Junior guard Corey Chandler (Newark, NJ/Newark East Side), a three-time NJAC Player of the Week, had 19 points (6-13 FG, 6-8 FT), seven rebounds, seven assists and seven turnovers in 37 minutes.
 
Junior guard/forward Lance Brown (Teaneck, NJ/Paterson Catholic) contributed 15 points (6-15 FG) in 33 minutes while junior guard Julio Rosario (Perth Amboy, NJ/Cardinal McCarrick) provided 10 points (3-7 FG) in 33 reserve minutes. Junior forward Thomas Goubadia (Union, NJ/Union) chipped in nine points and seven rebounds in 19 minutes.
 
NJCU led 36-25 at halftime as Albright (10), Williams (8) and Washington (8) outscored the Pioneers as a trio, 28-25. NJCU shot a blistering 59.1 percent from the field (13-22) and was a perfect 10-for-10 from the line in the period. The Pioneers were limited to 30.8 percent first half accuracy (8-26).
 
The Pioneers led by six (18-12) at the midway point of the first half before NJCU held the hosts scoreless for almost four minutes and used a 16-2 surge to gain a 28-20 lead with 4:02 left in the period as Albright capped the run with two of his 10 points that came during the stretch. A steal by Irick led to a fast break basket by Williams with 1:53 left in the period for a 12-point advantage and NJCU led by 11 at the break, 36-25, when Williams sank a jumper with 48 seconds remaining before the intermission.
 
The Pioneers came out strong to open the second half, scoring nine of the first 11 points and 12 of 16, and cut the deficit to 40-37 when DeStefano sank a three just 2:16 into the period. NJCU managed to maintain a lead of between two and six points and was still shooting above 60 percent as a team at the 14:13 mark (17-28, .607).  With NJCU leading by five, the Pioneers forced the first tie of the period with 10:50 to play on an offensive rebound and layup by Chandler.
 
NJCU regained the lead and a three-point play by Morris put NJCU in front, 54-49 with 10:25 on the clock. The Pioneers answered back with three three-pointers in 70 seconds. Chandler hit the first before DeStefano's shot with 9:02 left gave the hosts their first lead of the second half. A triple by Rosario increased the margin to 58-54. DeStefano sank another trey with 7:44 to play for a six-point, 61-55 differential.
 
The Pioneers began to grow the lead in the final five minutes. A three by DeStefano, his 18^th point of the game, made it 68-59 at the 5:03 mark. NJCU answered with a quick basket but a three-point play by Brown gave WPU its first 10-point lead, 71-61, with 3:13 left and he sank another jumper with 2:42 to go for a 73-63 advantage. NJCU committed 12 turnovers in the second half, including a number in transition, and gave the ball away for the 22^nd time in the game with under four minutes to play.
 
But NJCU kept battling. A short jumper by Irick with 2:27 left made it 73-66 and after a timeout, NJCU used is defense to force a turnover with a steal by Irick, culminating in a three-pointer by freshman DAVID COLE (Avenel, NJ/Colonia) with 1:52 to play for a four-point deficit (73-66). Chandler hit a pair from the line with 1:01 to play after NJCU failed to score on its previous possession.
 
With less than a minute remaining, Irick missed a three, but NJCU got the ball back on a key offensive board by Cole and with 42 seconds left, Morris buried a three making it 75-72. Morris swiped the ball from Chandler with 8.7 seconds left, and NJCU called timeout.
 
With 0.9 showing on the clock, Morris was fouled in the right corner by Rosario in the act of shooting what could have been a game-tying three. Morris, who entered the day as a 79.3 percent free throw shooter on the season, made the first three shots from the line to start the game, and with the game on the line, hit three more pressure shots to force overtime. The game nearly ended in regulation, however, as Brown committed a turnover on the inbounds pass and a quick three at the buzzer by Cole from deep drew iron but didn't fall.
 
In overtime, WPU led early 78-75. Irick cut it to one with a jumper with 3:30 left then drilled another shot with exactly three minutes to play, to put NJCU in front for the first time since the 9:41 mark of the second half.
 
But the lead would not hold. Albright missed two foul shots with 2:32 to play, and despite an offensive rebound, NJCU turned it over as a DeStefano steal gave WPU back the ball. With 2:12 to go, Goubadia scored inside on a baseline move to give the hosts an 80-79 lead it would not relinquish.
 
NJCU was called for traveling with 1:50 left and DeStefano sank two foul shots with 1:36 to play for a three-point edge. NJCU missed a three with 1:10 on the clock and DeStefano would hit the back end of two foul shots to push the lead to four. The Knights used too much clock on their next possession, missed a shot with 14 seconds left and DeStefano sank two from the line to seal the win.
 
NJCU can still clinch an NJAC Tournament berth and #2 NJAC North seeding with a win in its final regular season game on February 15 at 8 p.m. On Senior Day, NJCU will honor Williams, Washington and forward TAQUAN ABDULLAH (Kenilworth, NJ/David Brearley).