JERSEY CITY, N.J. | Donovan Crawford (North Brunswick, N.J./North Brunswick) led the Gothic Knights to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Semifinal behind a career-high 26 points. New Jersey City University (NJCU) knocked off #4 Franciscan in the ECAC Quarterfinal, 66-56, at the John J. Moore Athletics & Fitness Center on Saturday night. The Gothic Knights will now play in the ECAC Semifinal game against top-seeded Pitt-Greensburg at 2:00 pm on Sunday, March 8.
The match up between NJCU and Franciscan is the first bout between the two schools in program history.
NJCU (15-12) shot 46.8% from the floor and 76.9% from the free-throw line. Aiding Crawford in the scoring category was Bakhi Rogers-Robinson (Orange, N.J./West Caldwell Tech), who scored 17 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the field. Crawford led the Gothic Knights with 9 rebounds while Shelton tied for the team lead with two steals.
Franciscan (21-7) was held to 28.6% shooting from the field and 16.7% shooting from range. Nathan Richards led the Barons with 13 points, while Sawyer Butler added 10 points and a team-high 9 rebounds.
The Gothic Knights used scorching opening shooting in the first seven minutes to seize a 17-9 lead. Donovan Crawford (North Brunswick, N.J./North Brunswick) carried the entire offense during that stretch, pouring in 10 of NJCU's 17 points. Crawford caught fire early from behind the arc, draining both of his three-point attempts. NJCU continued to exploit Franciscan inside, building a 10-point cushion with under five minutes remaining in the half on a driving layup by Marc Brown Jr. That double-digit advantage didn't last long as Nathan Richards cashed in from deep to slice the deficit to seven. The Barons continued to build momentum with a Volodymyr Trotsko layup as time dwindled, heading into the locker room trailing 33-29.
Franciscan stormed out of the break and trimmed the lead to one before the Gothic Knights regrouped to extend their advantage to seven behind Brown Jr. once again. NJCU, led by Crawford, Leon Lawson (Rahway, N.J./Rahway), and Brince Shelton (Brooklyn, N.Y./George Westinghouse), deployed a 6-2 run to create separation and claim their largest lead of the game to that point. As the half wore on, Franciscan chipped away at the deficit, and with 1:49 remaining, trailed by just six as NJCU's offense went cold for three minutes. The Gothic Knights withstood the Barons' late 9-2 rally thanks to timely shooting from the charity stripe to hold onto the win and advance to the ECAC Semifinal.
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