JERSEY CITY, N.J. – Despite leading by as many as nine and holding a seven-point lead at the half, the New Jersey City University men's basketball team was unable to hang on at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) against William Paterson University and suffered the 90-82 loss on Wednesday night, Jan. 26, in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) competition. The Gothic Knights did make a late-second half run against the Pioneers, trimming the game from 22 points to eight, but were unable to get closer in the defeat.
 
Jersey City (9-10, 6-6 NJAC) had a strong first half against William Paterson (10-7, 7-5 NJAC) and took a 46-39 lead into the locker room as senior Kayton Darley (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) went 4-for-6, including 2-of-2 from three, over the first 20 to chip in a then-game-high-tying 12 points – he would finish the night with that point total. Unfortunately, combined with the final bucket of the first half, the Pioneers immediately regrouped during the break and exploded to start the second half, jumping out to a 27-4 run and held a 14-point, 64-50 lead with 13:09 remaining.
 
The Pioneers eventually opened that lead up to 78-56 with 8:54 left, and at the point the Gothic Knights began to inch their way back into the game with various mini runs until they trailed by eight at 85-77 with 1:28 left. Freshman Zaire Jefferson (Newark, N.J./Payne Tech) led the second-half surge for the Green and Gold as the rookie scored nine of his career-best 18 points in the final 5:52 of the night – he saw a collegiate-high 23 minutes on the floor against William Paterson, going 7-of-11 from the field.
 
Another bright spot for NJCU came in the form of senior Denzel Banks (Newark, NJ/East Orange Campus) who, despite battling foul trouble all night long, finished with a team-high 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting and 6-of-6 from the foul line to go with a game-best eight boards in just 21 minutes.
 
Up Next:
Looking to get back into the win column, Jersey City returns to action this Saturday afternoon, Jan. 29, for a scheduled 3:00 p.m. tipoff with The College of New Jersey at the JMAC. Weather permitting, NJCU looks for its second-straight win over the Lions and fifth in the last seven meetings. Most recently, the Gothic Knights toppled TCNJ 81-72 in Ewing, N.J., on Dec. 11, with Banks and Darley combining for 31 points in the win.