Junior swingman MARK WASHINGTON (East Orange, NJ/West Side) made his return to the New Jersey City University men’s basketball lineup one to remember. In his first game of the 2004-05 season after sitting out the first semester, Washington led all scorers with 26 points, and keyed a decisive 11-0 run as the Gothic Knights defeated Clark University (MA), 86-80, in the first round of the College of Staten Island Tournament of Heroes at the CSI Sports and Rec Center.
NJCU (5-4) will face host Staten Island for the tournament championship on Wednesday at 4pm. CSI defeated McDaniel College, 95-74, in the other first round game. CSI previously defeated NJCU, 84-76, in NJCU’s last game of the fall semester on December 11. Clark falls to 2-6 with the loss. It was the first meeting between NJCU and Clark since December 29, 2000; NJCU leads the series, 2-1.
Washington, who transferred to NJCU as a freshman in 2002-03 with seven semesters of eligibility remaining, sat out the first semester of this season to play a full senior campaign next year. He showed no rust in his first game as a junior. The All-America candidate scored 26 points on 10-of-17 shooting, and added seven assists, five rebounds, and three steals in 34 minutes of action.
Another newcomer excelled in his debut for the Knights as junior point guard ROB FREENEY (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway), a transfer from Richard Stockton College, tallied 13 points (4-of-7), including 2-of-4 from three-point range, and four assists in 28 minutes.
Sophomore power forward DEVIN DAVIS (Red Bank, NJ/Red Bank Regional) added 10 points (4-of-8 FG), and senior forward CHRISTOPHER KATES (Metuchen, NJ/Metuchen) notched 10 (3-of-5 FG). Senior shooting guard JAVIER RODRIGUEZ (Perth Amboy, NJ/Perth Amboy) finished with eight points, while freshman forward ANTOINNE MORGANO (Newark, NJ/University), who was making his collegiate debut after sitting out the fall semester, also chipped in eight points.
Four players reached double figures for the Cougars, led by sophomore forward ASHER COWAN (Petersborough, NH/Cushing Academy) who scored 22 points, including 6-of-9 from three-point territory. Freshman forward D.J. BRINN (Madison, CT/Daniel Hand) had 11 points, nine assists and three steals. Graduate center ADAM MILLER (Shrewsbury, MA/Worcester Academy) chipped in 13 points (5-of-7) and seven rebounds, and junior forward TIM DUTILE (Sunapee, NH/Lebanon) posted 13 points.
A game NJCU led 38-37 at the half was tied for a sixth time at 47-47 with 15:23 left. However, NJCU exploded for an 11-0 run over the next 2:51 to seize a 58-47 margin. The 11-point edge was the Knights’ largest of the game. Washington notched nine of NJCU’s 11 points during the spurt, including two dunks and a trey. Morgano also had a lay-up during the streak as the Knights maintained control for good after the run. Clark never drew closer than three the remainder of the game.
In defeat, Clark shot lights out from the floor, hitting on .542 of its shots (26-of-48), and .529 from the three-point zone (9-of-17), and converted 19-of-25 at the line (.760). However, NJCU, which shot .453 for the game (29-of-64), used its press defense to force 26 Cougar turnovers, and only committed 14 of its own. The Knights also had a 27-12 margin in bench scoring, and turned 18 offensive rebounds into a 24-6 difference in second chance points.
—www.njcugothicknights.com—
Newspaper Box Score Clark University vs New Jersey City University 12/28/04 5:30 pm at Staten Island, NY (Sports & Rec Center) At Staten Island, NY (Sports & Rec Center) NEW JERSEY CITY UNIVERSITY 86, CLARK UNIVERSITY 80 CLARK UNIVERSITY (2-6) Asher Cowan 6-9 4-4 22; Adam Miller 5-7 2-2 13; Tim Dutille 4-9 5-5 13; DJ Brinn 4-9 2-2 11; Pat Ochoa 3-5 2-4 9; Mischa Tripoli 2-5 0-0 4; Marc Sztul-Dupiton 1-2 2-2 4; Cory Szklarz 1-2 2-6 4; Sean Hoar 0-0 0-0 0; Brian MacDonald 0-0 0-0 0; Gunnar Hagstrom 0-0 0-0 0; Pat Landers 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-48 19-25 80. NEW JERSEY CITY UNIVERSITY (5-4) Mark Washington 10-17 5-8 26; Rob Freeney 4-7 3-9 13; Devin Davis 4-8 1-2 10; Christopher Kates 3-5 2-4 10; Antoinne Morgano 3-3 2-3 8; Javier Rodriguez 2-5 4-6 8; Luis DaSilva 1-1 1-2 4; Charles Coles 1-6 0-0 3; James Kaiser 0-0 2-2 2; Abraham Williams 1-6 0-0 2; Shaun Patterson 0-0 0-0 0; Lamar Jones 0-1 0-0 0; Will Morris 0-2 0-0 0; Ben Balcom 0-3 0-2 0. Totals 29-64 20-38 86. Clark University.............. 37 43 - 80 New Jersey City University.... 38 48 - 86 3-point goals-Clark University 9-17 (Asher Cowan 6-9; DJ Brinn 1-3; Adam Miller 1-2; Pat Ochoa 1-3), New Jersey City University 8-21 (Rob Freeney 2-4; Christopher Kates 2-2; Mark Washington 1-4; Charles Coles 1-4; Devin Davis 1-1; Luis DaSilva 1-1; Javier Rodriguez 0-3; Ben Balcom 0-2). Fouled out--Clark University-None, New Jersey City University-None. Rebounds-Clark University 32 (Adam Miller 7), New Jersey City University 33 (Abraham Williams 5; Mark Washington 5). Assists-Clark University 17 (DJ Brinn 9), New Jersey City University 15 (Mark Washington 7). Total fouls-Clark University 27, New Jersey City University 23. A-212 NJCU advances to the championship game at 4pm on 12/29 Clark will play in the consolation game at 2pm on 12/29