JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The New Jersey City University men's basketball team was unable to hold on on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 7, in a low-scoring New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) clash on home court at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC). Leading by eight with less than six minutes to go, the Gothic Knights unfortunately ended up falling to Rutgers-Newark by a final score of 55-53, as the Scarlet Raiders hit a pair of free throws with just two seconds remaining to tie it and then take the lead.

The name of the game was free throw shooting on the day as, in this ultra-competitve rivalry matchup, NJCU (7-7, 2-5 NJAC) shot 54.5 percent from the line (12-of-22), while Rutgers-Newark (4-9, 2-4 NJAC) was 70.4 percent from the stripe (19-of-27), including 13-of-16 in the second half (81.3 percent). That being said, it was a tight one all day long. The Scarlet Raiders started off the day with an 11-2 run, but the Green and Gold answered right back with a 15-0 run to take a six-point, 17-11 lead with 6:42 to go in the first half. Junior guard Pharoh Allah (Rahway, N.J./St. Genevieve (Calif.)) and freshman forward Branden Moore (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) each chipped in four points during this stretch, while senior co-captain forward Kayton Darley (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) put the exclamation point on the run with a three. However, with NJCU leading by five with under a minute to go until the break, Rutgers-Newark sank a quartet of free throws to cut the deficit to one at the half, 23-22.

The Scarlet Raiders eventually took the lead, and then extended it to five points at 34-29 with 13:28 to go in the second. At that point, a fire lit under the Gothic Knights' offense and the home squad went on a 12-0 run to regain a seven-point, 41-34 lead with 9:22 to go. Junior forward Avante Gilbert (Paterson, N.J./International) and junior guard Will Brown (Jersey City, N.J./Hudson Catholic) each chipped in three points over that stretch, while junior forward Jacob Valeus (Pleasantville, N.J./Pleasantville) knocked down a pair of threes. Scoring at that point then went back and forth before Jersey City took a game-high eight-point, 49-41 lead with just 5:39 remaining in the contest. Rutgers-Newark then went on a 9-2 run to cut the NJCU lead to just one at 51-50 with 2:27 to go. Darley proceeded to sink a pair of free throws to make it a three-point, 53-50 game with 2:15 left, but that was answered by a lay-up and a trio of made free throws — all with less than a minute to go — as the Scarlet Raiders came from behind to win the NJAC battle.

Highlights:
- Darley and Gilbert each finished the day with game-high-tying 11-point performances. Darley also grabbed five boards, while Gilbert blocked a shot, had a steal and pulled down three rebounds.
- Valeus was a perfect 3-of-3 from the floor, including 2-of-2 from long range. He chipped in eight points before fouling out in the final minutes.
- Junior center Michael Clement (Sicklerville, NJ/Winslow Township) added six points and a game-high-tying totals in rebounds (6) and blocked shots (2).

Up Next:
Jersey City returns to action early Wednesday evening, Jan. 11, on the road as the squad takes on another NJAC foe in Rutgers-Camden. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00 p.m., following the conclusion of the women's game.