TCNJ scored the first four points of the game and never trailed as it closed out the regular season with a 12-13 record overall and a 5-8 mark in the NJAC, giving Castaldo a 200-148 record in his 14th season. The Lions still have a shot at the third and final conference playoff berth from the NJAC South Division, but to make the post-season, they’ll need the Scarlet Raptors’ help on Saturday when Rutgers-Camden hosts Kean University at 3 p.m. Kean will bring a 4-8 NJAC record into the game, but would tie TCNJ record-wise and win the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Lions if the Cougars defeat the Raptors.
The win over Rutgers-Camden snapped the Lions' five-game losing streak, while the Scarlet Raptors lost for the seventh straight time. Rutgers-Camden is 5-19 overall and 1-11 in the conference heading into its final game this weekend. That Kean game will serve as Senior Day for the Scarlet Raptors’ senior duo of Dane Nicholson (Pleasantville, NJ/Holy Spirit) and Sydney Francis (Camden, NJ/Woodrow Wilson).
The Lions, who opened up a 29-18 halftime lead, held the Scarlet Raptors to only 24.1 percent shooting from the floor (7-for-29) in the opening 20 minutes.
TCNJ’s senior guard Brian Halligan (Delran, NJ/Delran) collected a game-high 19 points and added six rebounds, just one point shy of tying his career-best, while junior guard Corey Gilmore (South Plainfield, NJ/South Plainfield) netted 13 points for the Lions. Junior forward Mark Aziz (Hackettstown, NJ/West Morris) contributed 10 points for the Lions, who shot 31-for-59 (52.5) from the floor.
Rutgers-Camden received a double-double from Francis with 12 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Sophomore center Antoine Miller (Camden, NJ/Medical Arts) added 11 points for the Scarlet Raptors as they finished the night with a 37-30 edge on the boards.
Nicholson added eight rebounds and six points for the night as the Scarlet Raptors. He also had four steals to raise his Rutgers-Camden career record to 162.