Davis posted a double-double with 10 rebounds while Gian Paul Gonzalez (North Haledon, NJ/Manchester Regional) added another with 25 points and 10 rebounds as the Red Hawks (12-7) won their third straight and fifth time in the last six games. Michael Stewart (Brooklyn, NY/Westinghouse) scored a game-high 29 points for the Dolphins (14-7), who fell to Montclair, 85-77, in overtime last year. The game featured 15 ties and 16 lead changes.
Stewart, who scored 17 points in the second half, tied the game at 71-71 as he drained a three-pointer from the right left corner with 38 seconds left. The Dolphins then had a chance to win the game at the buzzer, however, Neville Lestrade’s (Staten Island, NY/Curtis) tip-in attempt rimmed out.
In the extra period, John Smith (Queens, NY/Bayside) scored CSI’s first six points, the last one tying the game at 77-77 with 2:15 left. Gonzalez hit two free throws to put MSU ahead, but Stewart answered with two foul shots to tie the game at 79-79 with 1:26 to play. Davis then gave the Red Hawks the lead with a short jumper and Lamont Newell (Lodi, NJ/Dwight Murrow) added a free throw with 33 seconds remaining to make the score 82-79. Stewart misfired on a three-pointer with 24 seconds left. Newell grabbed the rebound and fired a long outlet pass to Davis, who threw down a dunk while being fouled, and converted the ensuing free throw for an 85-79 lead with 19 seconds to go. Newell closed out the scoring with a free throw for the final margin.
Newell added 10 points and eight rebounds for MSU, which got 10 points apiece from Anwar Montgomery (Scotch Plains, NJ/SP-Fanwood) and George Tejada (Hackensack, NJ/Fort Lee). Michael Nebavlakis (Brooklyn, NY/FDR) had 22 points with Carliotto Ulett (Brooklyn, NY/Midwood) adding 16 points for Staten Island.
Montclair State committed just seven turnovers in the game, but struggled from the free-throw line. The Red Hawks made only 24-of-46 attempts from the charity stripe (52 percent), including 3-of-12 in the first half. The Dolphins, who were outrebounded 45-42, also struggled with their foul shooting going 12-of-22 (54 percent).