NEWARK, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | New Jersey City University established a program record for the largest margin of victory ever in a postseason game and advanced to the championship game of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III Metro/Upstate for the 10th time in its history by crushing Baruch College, 94-55, in the ECAC Semifinals on March 5 at The Golden Dome Arena.
 
NJCU (20-8), the No. 2 seed, clinched its first 20-win season since going 20-9 in the 2005-06 campaign and the 15th time in program history and will seek its seventh ECAC championship tomorrow at 3 p.m. against No. 4 Ithaca College (15-12). The Bombers used a 9-0 run in the final four minutes to spark a comeback to knockout No. 1 seeded and host Rutgers-Newark, 86-83 in the other semifinal. NJCU, which has already won a record six ECAC titles, last captured the title in 2006.
 
NJCU, playing the 81st playoff game, either NCAA or ECAC, in its program history, bettered the previous largest margin of victory in a postseason game of 33. Ironically, that came in the only other post-season meeting with Baruch, in a 93-60 neutral court outcome on March 7, 1981 in the ECAC semifinals. Baruch, the No. 3 seed, had its season end at 17-14.
 

Four players scored in double figures for NJCU which used a 16-0 run late in the first half to blow the hinges off the game. That allowed the Gothic Knights to boast a 28-point, 49-21 margin at the half and NJCU led by as many as 47 in the second period.
 
Freshman small forward James Julius (Linden, NJ/Linden) was a perfect 4-for-4 from three-point distance in the first half (12 points) and hit five triples in the game, shooting 6-of-7 overall from the field and 5-of-6 from three, to finish with a game-high 17 points in just 17 minutes off the bench.
 
On a day where NJCU received an incredible 69-18 differential in bench scoring over Baruch, the top performers were all newcomers this season.
 
Freshman guard Tyler Caldwell (Jersey City, NJ/Snyder) scored a career-high 14 on 5-of-8 shooting (2-of-4 3FG) with three steals in 15 minutes. Freshman small forward James Frazier (Elizabeth, NJ/Elizabeth) was 4-of-8 from the floor, scoring 11 with three assists and junior guard Andrew Tomlin (Newark, NJ/Central) added 11 on 4-of-8 shooting with three threes (3-7) in 18 minutes. He added three steals and three assists.
 
Also for NJCU, freshman center Jeremiah Boone-Alexandre (West Orange, NJ/West Orange) had nine rebounds and eight points (4-6 FG). Leading scorer and junior shooting guard Jalen Harris (Brandywine, MD/Gwynn Park (Md.)) wasn't called on to carry the load on this night. He only took six shots, making half (3-6) to tally seven points in 12 minutes.

Doyin Isaac led Baruch with 14 points (6-13 FG), six rebounds and three assists. Chimaechi Ekekeugbor finished with 13 points (5-10 FG). William Sixsmith had 10, shooting 3-of-7 from three-point range.
 
NJCU shot 52.1 percent overall (38-73) and was consistent all night, shooting 50 percent in the first half (20-40), before improving to 54.5 percent in the second (18-33).
 
Baruch, after shooting just 28.6 percent (8-28) in the opening 20 minutes, more than doubled that in the second half (59.1 percent, 13-22), but was still never a factor.
 
NJCU committed just nine turnovers and turned 18 Baruch giveaways into a 27-10 margin in points off turnovers. NJCU outrebounded Baruch, 44-25, including 18-4 on the offensive glass which translated into a 27-7 differential in second chance scoring.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• NJCU never trailed. Up 12-8, a basket by Frazier, triples by Tomlin and Julius and an offensive rebound and follow by Boone-Alexandre, made it a 22-11 lead.
• After a three by Baruch, the floodgates opened. A tip-in by NJAC Defensive Player of the Year, senior power forward Chinwe Wosu (Jersey City, NJ/University Academy Charter) with 7:27 left, and a Tomlin fast break made it 26-14. Junior point guard Ata Robinson (Newark, NJ/East Side) scored, Frazier hit a three, and Julius buried another trey, as the margin reached 22, 36-14, with 3:50 on the clock. Caldwell scored inside with 3:07 remaining to make it 38-14 as the 16-0 outburst over a span of 5:15 put the game away.
• After Baruch hit a three, Julius canned back-to-back threes in a span of 25 seconds for a 44-17 advantage with 1:54 left and the run was extended to 22-3. Three points by Frazier in the final minutes of the half gave the Knights a 30-point lead, 49-19.
• Baruch never came closer than 20 in the second half.
• Leading 58-37 with 13:31 to go, the Knights again exploded offensively, using a 22-0 outburst to push the lead to 37 with 7:30 to play when junior forward Chris Freeman (Atlantic City, NJ/Atlantic Christian)) putback an offensive carom for an 80-37 cushion. The Knights twice led by 47, including 92-45 when Tomlin sank a three with 3:50 left.

 
Quotable Knights:
 
Head Coach Marc Brown, 9th season (135-106), on his thoughts on the game:
"Defense was the key to tonight's win. We were really engaged defensively from the beginning of the game. Obviously, we shot well. The first half was the best first half of basketball for us this season! It was a total team effort."
 
Brown on the team's excitement about Sunday's championship game:
"We are really excited about the chance to win 21 games and bring home an ECAC Championship title. We are looking forward to possibly sending Khalid [small forward Khalid Muhammad (Orange, NJ/Orange)] and Chinwe out as winners."
 
#KnightNotes:

• NJCU leads all-time series with Baruch, 6-0, including 2-0 in the playoffs.
• It was the first meeting between NJCU and Baruch since November 20, 2004 when NJCU defeated the Bearcats, 82-71, in Jersey City in the championship game of the Gothic Knight Tip-Off Tournament.
• NJCU (1-3) won a neutral court game for the first time this season.
• The 94 points were the most scored by NJCU in a playoff game since defeating NYU, 94-89, in the ECAC championship game in Jersey City on March 4, 2001. NJCU matched the fifth most points it has ever scored in an ECAC game
• NJCU was playing its 81st post-season game in its history while making its 39^th post-season appearance as an NCAA Division III program. Between 21 ECAC and 18 NCAA Tournaments, it owns an all-time post-season ledger of 46-35 (.568).
• NJCU is making its 32nd post-season appearance in 34 years.
• NJCU is making its 21st appearance in the ECAC Tournament. The Knights own an all-time 29-14 (.674) record in 43 tournament games.
• NJCU has won a record six ECAC Metro championships—1981, 1983, 1993, 1994, 2001 and 2006. The Knights also qualified for the ECACs in 1976, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1991, 1993, 1994, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013 and 2014.
• Khalid Muhammad now has 1,246 career points and is 16th in school history. Hall-of-Famer Steve Schindler is 15th with 1263 points in three seasons (1970-73).
• James Frazier scored in double figures for the ninth time in 19 games since joining the team on December 29 and third game in a row.
• James Julius scored in double figures for the seventh time this season.
• Tyler Caldwell scored in double figures for the third time this season. His previous career high was 12 (Nov. 24, 2015 at Rutgers-Newark and February 1 vs. Kean).
• Andrew Tomlin scored in double figures for the fourth time since joining the team on January 13.

 
What's Next?:
NJCU seeks its first ECAC championship since 2005-06. It enters the title game with a 6-3 record all-time in the ECAC finals. NJCU and Ithaca have played just once before—December 9, 2011 in a neutral court tournament game at Juniata in Huntingdon, Pa. Ithaca won that game, 78-73. Follow live stats (http://sidearmstats.com/rutgers/mbball/) or live video (http://rutgersnewarkathletics.com/watch/?Live=186).