GALLOWAY, N.J. — After a tough start to the first half, the New Jersey City University men's basketball team — fresh off this week's viral buzzer-beating moment — nearly came back to top Stockton University on the road on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 11, in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) play. The Gothic Knights came all the way back from 18 points down against the Ospreys and found themselves all tied up at 58-58 with just 5:55 remaining in regulation. Unfortunately, Stockton was able to regain momentum and — despite a game-high 19 points from senior co-captain forward Kayton Darley (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) — topped NJCU, 74-61.

As mentioned, the Ospreys (21-3, 15-2 NJAC) managed to take a game-high 18-point, 36-18 lead over the Gothic Knights (11-13, 6-11 NJAC), but NJCU closed out the first half with a 9-3 run to cut the deficit to 12 at 39-27. The Green and Gold stretched that run to 13-3 to make it an eight-point, 39-31 game with 18:05 to go in the second half. Then, trailing by 13 at 53-40 with 13:50 to go, Jeresy City went on a 17-5 run to tie it up at 58-58 with just under six minutes remaining.

During that stretch — during which the Gothic Knights started it off on an 11-0 run — Darley drained six points, while junior forward Ryan Savoy (Lakewood, N.J./Lakewood) chipped in four. Unfortunately, over the game's final 5:16, the Ospreys outscored NJCU 16-3 and took advantage of their chances at the free throw line. They road team shot 80.0 percent (20-of-25) from the stripe overall and were 10-of-13 down the aforementioned stretch.

Highlights:
- Senior forward Yvens Monfleury (Newark, N.J./American History) led all players with 10 rebounds to go with five points, a game-best three steals and a block.
- Junior guard Will Brown III (Jersey City, N.J./Hudson Catholic) contributed nine points and a steal in his return to the court.
- Senior guard Keshon Smith (Queens, N.Y./Martin Van Buren) chipped in seven points on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting to go with a rebound, an assist and a block.
- Senior co-captain guard Jason Battle (Jersey City, N.J./Roselle Catholic) added five points, four rebounds and a steal.
- Savoy finished with six points, seven rebounds, two dimes and a block.

Up Next:
Despite today's defeat, the Gothic Knights still remain in sole possession of sixth place in the NJAC regular-season standings. NJCU's 2023 Conference Tournament hopes reside solely within the squad's control, as Jersey City is one game ahead of both Ramapo College and Rutgers-Newark (each 5-12 in NJAC play). The Gothic Knights need to hold stedfast and come away victorious on Wednesday night , Feb. 15 — Senior Night — at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) as Rutgers-Camden comes to Coach Charlie Brown Court for an 8:00 p.m. tipoff.