Senior point guard LATRESE McNAIR (Elizabeth, NJ/Elizabeth) forced overtime with 2.6 seconds remaining, and she scored four of her 22 points in the extra session before fouling out, and junior power forward TIFFANY BOYD (Jersey City, NJ/Lincoln) notched 20 points and seven blocks, as New Jersey City University rallied from a 14-point, second half deficit to defeat Ramapo College, 81-78 on overtime. The game on Saturday at the Bradley Center was the New Jersey Athletic Conference finale for both schools.
NJCU improves to 9-15 overall and 4-9 in the NJAC, snapping a three-game losing streak. The .308 NJAC winning percentage is NJCU’s highest in league play since going 8-10 (.444) in 1998-99. That was also the last season in which NJCU swept a two-game season series from Ramapo, after winning the initial meeting on January 24. Ironically, it was NJCU’s first overtime game since a 54-50 win, also at Ramapo, on January 21, 2006.
McNair, who scored 15 of her 22 points in the second half and overtime, collected her seventh 20-point game of the season and the 13th of her career, upping her career scoring mark to 1,229. She shot 10-of-19, with six rebounds.
Boyd shot 10-of-17 for a season-high 20 points, one shy of her career high, finishing close to a triple-double with 10 rebounds and seven blocks. The No. 2 ranked shot blocker in Division III, Boyd notched her eighth game with five or more blocks this season and the 13th of her career.
Freshman guard CAROLINA GARCIA (Franklin Park, NJ/Franklin) scored 13 points (5-10 FG; 2-5 3FG), adding eight rebounds and three assists. Sophomore forward TRISHA SANON (Jersey City, NJ/County Prep) notched her first career double-double, with 10 points and 10 rebounds. The rebounds were a career-high and the 10 points matches a career best. Senior guard BERNICE AMADEO (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) had 10 points (2-6 3FG), six rebounds and three assists.
Five players reached double figures for Ramapo, led by freshman center Beth Weinmann (Pompton Plains, NJ/Pequannock) with 17 points (7-10 FG), 11 rebounds, and four blocks. Junior Natasha Gross (Glen Rock, NJ/Glen Rock) had 13 points and five steals, while senior guard Kelly Bartz (Madison, NJ/Madison) added 11 points and six assists, but shot 2-of-15.
The Roadrunners also received 11 points from sophomore guard Lauren Moschel (Fair Lawn, NJ/St. Mary’s), and 10 points and six rebounds from freshman guard Stephanie Cannizzaro (Pequannock, NJ/Pequannock).
NJCU shot 47.9 percent overall, but sizzled from the field in the second half, for a 52.9 percent rate (18-34), and made 4-of-7 shots in overtime (57.1 percent). NJCU had a 44-32 advantage in points in the paint. Ramapo lost despite NJCU committing 26 turnovers, and its bench outscoring the Knights, 28-6.
In the first half, with NJCU leading 20-16 at 8:50, Ramapo uncorked a 9-0 run to move ahead 25-20 at 6:25. The Roadrunners extended that spurt to 20-4, and RCNJ led 36-24 with 2:10 remaining in the first period. Weinmann had nine points, and Moschel chipped in six during the spurt. RCNJ led at the half, 42-31.
Ramapo continued to lead throughout the second half, twice owning 14-point advantages, including 59-45 with 11:14 remaining. But from there, the tandem of Boyd and McNair began to systematically chip away at the lead. An 11-0 run over a span of 2:58, capped by an Amadeo lay-up made it a three-point game, 59-56, with 8:16 left. Boyd had six points during the spurt.
The game remained a one or two-possession lead for Ramapo for the remainder of the half, with NJCU trimming the Roadrunner advantage to one point on four occasions. With 4:44 left, Garcia nailed a three-pointer making it 64-63, and Boyd sank jumpers at 4:00 (66-65) and 1:43 (68-67) to prevent RCNJ from expanding their lead.
With 41 seconds left, Sanon hit a short jumper for a 70-69 deficit and Moschel missed the front end of two free throws with 13 seconds remaining. NJCU had the ball with a chance to tie, and McNair drove down the right side of the lane, tossing an off-balanced shot off the window to tie the contest at 71-71, forcing overtime. RCNJ made just eight field goals in the second half (8-22, .364).
In overtime, a jumper by Garcia gave NJCU its first lead since the 8:14 mark of the first half, and McNair added a lay-up for a 75-71 margin. A triple by freshman guard JERICA HAYES (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) put NJCU ahead 78-72 with 3:34 left, and McNair added a lay-up with 2:35 on the board for an 80-74 lead, providing what proved to be the winning margin. She fouled out with 1:20 remaining and NJCU ahead 80-76. After Cannizzaro hit two free throws to make it 80-78 and a Bartz steal, Moschel missed two from the line with 55 seconds left, and Garcia added one with 23 ticks remaining, for the 81-78 final.
NJCU will play its final game of the 2006-07 season on Tuesday, February 20 at 7:30 p.m. when it visits St. Joseph’s College-Brooklyn for the second time this season, for a game added to the schedule last week. NJCU won the initial meeting on January 17, 79-66.
—www.njcugothicknights.com—
Newspaper Box Score New Jersey City University vs Ramapo College of NJ 02/17/07 1:00 PM at Mahwah, NJ (Bill Bradley Center) At Mahwah, NJ (Bill Bradley Center) NEW JERSEY CITY UNIVERSITY 81, RAMAPO COLLEGE OF NJ 78 NEW JERSEY CITY UNIVERSITY (9-15, 4-9 NJAC) Latrese McNair 10-19 2-3 22; Tiffany Boyd 10-17 0-1 20; Carolina Garcia 5-10 1-2 13; Bernice Amadeo 4-10 0-0 10; Trisha Sanon 4-10 2-2 10; Jerica Hayes 1-3 0-1 3; Natashia Clackley 1-3 1-2 3; Michelle Vasquez 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 35-73 6-11 81. RAMAPO COLLEGE OF NJ (6-18, 1-12 NJAC) Beth Weinmann 7-10 3-5 17; Natasha Gross 4-11 5-7 13; Lauren Moschel 4-5 3-8 11; Kelly Bartz 2-15 7-10 11; Stephanie Cannizzaro 3-8 2-2 10; Keona Palmer 3-11 3-4 9; Tiffany China 3-3 1-1 7; Janice Conroy 0-0 0-0 0; Erica Maclin 0-0 0-0 0; Camille Mammolite 0-0 0-0 0; Malika Gilliam 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 26-66 24-37 78. New Jersey City University.... 31 40 10 - 81 Ramapo College of NJ.......... 42 29 7 - 78 3-point goals--New Jersey City University 5-17 (Carolina Garcia 2-5; Bernice Amadeo 2-6; Jerica Hayes 1-3; Natashia Clackley 0-1; Latrese McNair 0-2), Ramapo College of NJ 2-8 (Stephanie Cannizzaro 2-2; Natasha Gross 0-2; Kelly Bartz 0-4). Fouled out--New Jersey City University-Bernice Amadeo; Latrese McNair, Ramapo College of NJ-Keona Palmer. Rebounds--New Jersey City University 50 (Trisha Sanon 10; Tiffany Boyd 10), Ramapo College of NJ 40 (Beth Weinmann 11). Assists--New Jersey City University 13 (Carolina Garcia 3; Bernice Amadeo 3), Ramapo College of NJ 9 (Kelly Bartz 6). Total fouls--New Jersey City University 23, Ramapo College of NJ 13. Technical fouls--New Jersey City University-None, Ramapo College of NJ-None. A-150