MONTCLAIR, N.J. —The New Jersey City University men's basketball enjoyed late runs at the close of both halves as the Gothic Knights put away New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) foe Montclair State University 87-69 to close out the regular season on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 27, on the road. NJCU was led by rookie Ryan Savoy (Lakewood, N.J./Lakewood), who notched his second straight double-double with games highs in points (20) and rebounds (11) on 10-of-13 from the floor. Sophomore Derryen Whyte (Irvington, N.J./Union) also chipped in an efficient performance with 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting to go with five rebounds.

Overall, five separate Gothic Knights (5-1, 5-1 NJAC) finished the day in double figures scoring in the win over Montclair State (5-3, 5-3 NJAC). The Red Hawks controlled the pace in the early going, sinking two three-pointers in the first three minutes of play to take a five-point 9-4 lead with 16:41 remaining until the half. NJCU immediately responded with a furious 7-0 run to take the 11-9 lead at the 15:24 mark, powered by five points from Whyte, include three made free throws.

The two teams slugged it out for much of the remainder of the first half until NJCU found itself down 33-31 with 5:34 remaining, at which point the Gothic Knights erupted on a 15-5 run — including six points from junior Kayton Darley (West New York, N.J./North Bergen) — to end the frame with a 46-38 lead.

Montclair whittled the NJCU lead down over the opening seven minutes of second half play, eventually taking a 54-53 lead. Savoy answered with a marvelous stretch of work, notching six of the Gothic Knight's next eight points, as well as a steal and assist over three minutes of play.

NJCU never looked back, closing the final 10 minutes of play with an astounding 26-8 run. The Gothic Knights would lead by as many as 20 before finishing the game up 18. NJCU shot 59.6 percent on the night, taking advantage of 10 steals to double up Montclair State on points off turnovers 33-16. Also crucial to the victory was the advantage down low, as NJCU racked up an incredible 54 points from the paint.

Highlights:
- Junior Keshon Smith (Queens, N.Y./Martin Van Buren) was 3-of-4 from the floor and 6-of-6 from the line to finish with 12 points.
- Darley had 11 points and was also 3-of-4 shooting.
- Senior Jahmere Calhoun (Manchester, NJ/Brick Memorial) chipped in 10 points on 4-of-5 from the floor.

Despite the regular-season finale, NJCU will return to the court as the #2 seed on Friday night, March 5, for a home NJAC Tournament quarterfinal contest against #8 Rutgers-Camden at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center in Jersey City, N.J.