MONTCLAIR, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Montclair State University, the three-time defending New Jersey Athletic Conference champions, limited the New Jersey City University women's basketball team to three points in the second quarter and to single digits in each period before prevailing, 74-25, in NJAC action on January 16 at the Panzer Athletic Center.
 
Montclair (11-5, 7-2 NJAC), which fell out of the national rankings this week for the first time all season, shot 29-of-72 from the field and forced 32 Gothic Knight turnovers while limiting NJCU (1-14, 0-9 NJAC, Lost 12) to 22.2 percent shooting in the game (10-45).
 
Montclair led 17-8 after one quarter, 38-11 at halftime and 53-20 at the end of 30 minutes before outscoring the Knights 21-5 in the fourth quarter.
 
MSU also owns a 55-33 edge on the glass including 21-7 on the offensive boards. The Red Hawks held a 36-14 margin in points in the paint, a 43-2 advantage in bench scoring and turned NJCU's giveaways into a 34-10 differential in points off turnovers. The final score proved to be MSU's largest lead (+49) in the lopsided contest.
 
All 13 players who saw court time for Montclair had at least one basket. Rachael Krauss led the Red Hawks with 14 points (5-9 FG) including 4-of-7 three-point prowess in 20 minutes. Yazmine Lacey had 11 points (4-8 FG) and eight rebounds in 11 minutes. Erica Snow chipped in 11 points (4-10 FG; 3-9 3FG). Four other players had at least six points.
 
NJCU's top scorer was freshman guard Christine Bizub (Fort Lee, NJ/Fort Lee) with nine points (3-11 FG). Senior forward Deseree Johnson (Red Bank, NJ/Monmouth Regional) and junior forward Ziyadah Williams (Jersey City, NJ/University Academy Charter) each had seven rebounds but combined for just four points.
 
#KnightNotes:

• 59th meeting. Montclair leads the all-time series, 56-3, and has won the last 25 meetings since February 13, 2002. NJCU has never won in Montclair, NJ.
• The 25 points was NJCU's lowest scoring output since a 60-20 loss at Mount Saint Mary on December 6, 1998 and the fewest in an NJAC game since a 65-22 loss at William Paterson on January 31, 1995. Its previous season low was 30 points at Kean (December 12, 2015).
• Deseree Johnson (87 three pointers, 84 career games) did not have a made field goal in the game and is still third in school history in threes. In second is former teammate Jade Medley with 88 threes in 98 games (2011-15).
• Johnson did not score a field goal for the first time in 35 games; the last occurrence was November 25, 2014 against Rutgers-Newark when she did not take a shot (0-0) in nine minutes after returning from an injury.
• Montclair State received 14 points in the January 11 D3hoops.com poll after previously being ranked No. 23. The 14 points is equivalent to a No. 35 national listing.

 
What's Next?:
On Wednesday, January 20 at 6 p.m. NJCU will host Rutgers-Newark (5-11, 1-8 NJAC) at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (Coach Charlie Brown Court). The Scarlet Raiders won the first meeting this season in Newark, NJ, 86-65. In that game, Maria Simmons scored 28 points for the Raiders, hitting 11-of-19 overall and 4-of-6 from three-point territory while dishing 12 of the 22 assists for a double-double. She added seven rebounds and four steals in 32 minutes. Arianna Williams also had a double-double for RUN, scoring 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting and 4-of-6 three-point accuracy while grabbing 11 rebounds (eight defensive) with three assists in 36 minutes. Junior guard Jazz Randall (Parsippany, NJ/West Orange) netted 12 points on 6-of-10 shooting for NJCU while chalking up four assists in 38 minutes. Deseree Johnson finished with 10 points, making 3-of-6 from three-point territory. It will be the 69th meeting between the schools. Rutgers-Newark has won the last 11 meetings and leads the all-time series, 47-21. Follow live stats (http://sidearmstats.com/njcu/wbball/) or live video (https://www.youtube.com/user/NJCUGothicKnights/live).