JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The New Jersey City University men's basketball team continued New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) play Saturday afternoon, Jan. 28, against Kean University. The Gothic Knights played its third to final home game of the regular season at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) as the Cougars topped NJCU late 84-74.
Jersey City (9-11, 4-9 NJAC) yet again opened the game up to a hot start as senior guard Jason Battle (Jersey City, N.J./Roselle Catholic) converted a three from beyond the arc to start off the game, as well a short jumper in the paint to aid in leading NJCU to a 12-4 start. The Cougars (15-5, 8-5 NJAC) did not stay quiet for long though, as with 11:39 left in the half, they strung together a 12-4 run of their own to tie the score at 16-16. This run was the leading catalyst in the half for Kean as they shot a 16-of-30 from the field compared to NJCU's 14-of-32. The cougars also shot 6-of-9 in the half from the charity stripe compared to the Gothic Knights 2-of-3, creating a deficit for NJCU at half as the Cougars led by six, 39-33.
Unfortunately for NJCU the second half saw a similar fate, as the Cougars only attempted seventeen field goals in the entirety of the second half. Kean only converted nine of those, but due to a multitude of fouls, the Cougars shot a strong 24-of-28 from the free throw line. In the second half NJCU briefly held a lead, after junior center Michael Clement (Sicklerville, NJ/Winslow Township) converted a jump shot to make the score 55-53 with 11:23 left, but it would be short lived as Kean outscored NJCU 8-1 to lead by five, 61-56. NJCU though was able to bring the deficit back to within three points with 4:58 left after Battle converted his second three on the game, to make the score 70-67, but foul trouble played the biggest factor over the closing minutes as Kean expanded its lead to double digits and went on to win by a final score of 84-74.
Highlights:
- Both junior forward Avante Gilbert (Paterson, N.J./International) and junior guard Will Brown III (Jersey City, N.J./Hudson Catholic) led the squad with fourteen points each.
- Battle played strong in thirty four minutes as he netted two threes and shot 4-of-10 from the field while tallying a team high three steals along with Brown III.
- Freshman Branden Moore (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) played a strong game despite only seeing seven minutes on the floor as he tallied eight points in the post as well as a crucial block in the early stages of the game.
Up Next:
The Green and Gold travel on the road to Mahwah, N.J., Wednesday, Jan. 28, as the team plays in its most important game of the season against Ramapo College. NJCU is tied with Ramapo at a 4-9 conference record going into the game as NJCU currently holds on to the final spot in the NJAC tournament, with the Roadrunners just looking in from the outside. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. after the conclusion of the women's game.
