JERSEY CITY, N.J. — After a tough overtime loss to Rowan, the New Jersey City University men's basketball team bounced back with another high-scoring performance on Saturday, Dec. 16. NJCU was dominant all afternoon at home on Coach Charlie Brown Court at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC), as they defeated Saint Elizabeth 93-64.

NJCU (3-8) got on the board first this afternoon, with a jumper by senior forward Avante Gilbert (Paterson, N.J./International). It was the beginning of a wire-to-wire victory for the Gothic Knights, as they would not trail the Eagles (4-6) for the remaining 39:46. NJCU held Saint Elizabeth to just 39.7% from the field and 12.5% from three, while the Gothic Knights shot 48.6% from the field and 40% from three. 

With 9:44 remaining in the first half, SEU cut into the NJCU lead and trailed 20-17, but this was the closest they would get for the remainder of the game. NJCU finished the half on a 26-16 run and lead by 13 with Gilbert adding 10 more to his total during the run on perfect shooting.

Jersey City continued adding onto their lead in the second half. Despite Saint Elizabeth seeing an improvement in field goal percentage, NJCU held them to just 1-9 from three. NJCU also won the points off turnovers battle, scoring 18 to SEU's 8. Sophomore guard Bakhi Rogers-Robinson (Orange, N.J./West Caldwell Tech) had 10 second-half points, while junior guard Hakeem Wilson (Newark, N.J./North Star Academy) and graduate forward Daniel Rodriguez (Newark, N.J./Hudson Catholic) both had 9 each. With a 20+ point lead for the final 15:25 of play, NJCU cruised their way to a 93-64 victory.

Highlights:
- Avante Gilbert (Paterson, N.J./International) shot 9/10 from the field and set a new career-high in field goals made.
- Hakeem Wilson (Newark, N.J./North Star Academy) set a new career-high in steals with 5.
- NJCU reached the 90-point mark in scoring for the second time this season, and in back-to-back games (12/16/23 vs. Rowan).

Up Next:
NJCU will have nearly two weeks off, but will next travel to Newport News, Va. for the CNU/Holiday Inn Invitational. They will play Stevenson at Thursday, Dec. 28th, and either Old Westbury or Christopher Newport the following day. Tip-off against Stevenson is set for 3:00 p.m.