New Jersey City University trailed 17-1 in the first half, and by as many as 12 in the second period, but rallied to win by double digits, defeating Baruch College, 82-71, in the championship game of the 2004 NJCU Gothic Knight Tip-Off Tournament at the Athletic and Fitness Center.
NJCU improved to 2-0 overall by winning its own tournament for a third consecutive time, including 1999, the last time it was held. Baruch is 1-1 overall. NJCU is 5-0 all-time against the Bearcats. This was the first meeting between the schools in more than 20 years (January 1984).
NJCU was led by sophomore forward DEVIN DAVIS (Red Bank, NJ/Red Bank Regional), who one night after scoring 31 points, grabbed 18 rebounds (11 defensive) and scored 10 points with three assists in 31 minutes, to garner the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award.
Sophomore power forward ABRAHAM WILLIAMS (Jersey City, NJ/Lincoln) also was selected to the All-Tournament Team after notching 14 points, five rebounds and four steals in 28 minutes.
NJCU’s high man was senior forward
CHRISTOPHER KATES (Metuchen, NJ/Metuchen), who scored 13 of his career high 15 points in the second half. He shot 5-of-10 in only 23 minutes. Freshman point guard SHAUN PATTERSON (Asbury Park, NJ/Red Bank Regional) added 13 points (4-of-8 FG), including 3-of-7 three-point shooting.
However, the key to NJCU’s victory may have been the three-point prowess of freshman shooting guard NAMREH WHITE (Plainfield, NJ/Smith, NC) who scored all 12 of his points in the second half. He chipped in four assists in only 19 minutes, and made his time count by draining 4-of-5 from long range (4-of-6 overall).
NJCU led 68-64 with 3:37 remaining, before White nailed back-to-back treys to extend NJCU’s edge to 10 for the first time in the game, and give NJCU a 74-64 lead with only 2:24 on the board.
For the Bearcats, senior guard LOUIE KARIS (Brooklyn, NY/Xaverian) had a game-high 17 points with four assists before becoming one of four Baruch players to foul out. Senior guard CHRIS ALESI (Staten Island, NY/Xaverian) was selected to the All-Tournament team, with 15 points and six assists, while shooting 7-of-15. He scored many of his points while driving to the basket.
Senior forward SIME MARNIKA (Long Island City, NY/Archbishop Molloy) had a double-double with 12 points (6-of-7 FT) and 10 rebounds (eight defensive). Sophomore forward CHEICK FADIKA (Abidjan, Ivory Coast/Petit College (Morocco)), the key to Baruch’s 26-point win in the first round, was also tabbed to the All-Tournament team. He chipped in 11 rebounds (seven defensive), eight points, and four blocks. Fadika and Marnika each fouled out in the later stages of the second half.
Baruch opened up an immediate 10-0 lead in the first 3:30 of the game, and held an 18-1 edge at 12:09 of the first half. NJCU did not hit its first field goal until a Kates jumper with 10:57 remaining in the period. The Bearcats still held a 34-20, 14-point lead with 1:47 left before the half, and went into the break ahead 34-24.
With 13:00 left in the game, Baruch’s lead was still 10 points (44-34). However, NJCU began to rally. White sank his second three-pointer to make it 44-39, and the Knights tied it for the first time at 46-46 with 10:33 left. Baruch rebounded to take a 51-46 lead before a Davis trey and Williams lay-up gave NJCU back a narrow lead. The two teams traded several leads, and with 4:38 on the clock, the game was tied for a fourth time at 64-64.
However, NJCU went on a 10-0 run over the next 2:14, highlighted by White’s consecutive threes. Baruch never closed the gap to fewer than five after the essential scoring run.
—www.njcugothicknights.com—
Newspaper Box Score Baruch College (NY) vs New Jersey City University 11/20/04 8:05 pm at Jersey City, NJ (Athletic & Fitness Ctr) At Jersey City, NJ (Athletic & Fitness Ctr) NEW JERSEY CITY UNIVERSITY 82, BARUCH COLLEGE (NY) 71 BARUCH COLLEGE (NY) (1-1) Karis, Louie 6-18 4-6 17; Alesi, Chris 7-15 1-3 15; Marnika, Sime 3-8 6-7 12; Burzo, John 3-9 3-4 11; Fadika, Cheick 3-6 2-2 8; Baptise, Anwar 2-4 1-2 5; Davidson, Robi 1-5 1-2 3; Serrano, Adrian 0-1 0-0 0; O'Connor, Chris 0-1 0-0 0; Chin, Christopher 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-67 18-26 71. NEW JERSEY CITY UNIVERSITY (2-0) Christopher Kates 5-10 4-6 15; Abraham Williams 5-15 4-9 14; Shaun Patterson 4-8 2-3 13; Namreh White 4-6 0-0 12; Devin Davis 4-16 1-4 10; Rajahn Jones 3-8 1-2 8; James Kaiser 2-4 0-2 4; Javier Rodriguez 0-4 3-6 3; Ben Balcom 0-5 2-2 2; Johnnie Taylor 0-1 1-2 1; Will Morris 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 27-80 18-36 82. Baruch College (NY)........... 34 37 - 71 New Jersey City University.... 24 58 - 82 3-point goals-Baruch College (NY) 3-21 (Burzo, John 2-5; Karis, Louie 1-10; Davidson, Robi 0-4; Alesi, Chris 0-2), New Jersey City University 10-29 (Namreh White 4-5; Shaun Patterson 3-7; Christopher Kates 1-3; Rajahn Jones 1-4; Devin Davis 1-5; Ben Balcom 0-3; Javier Rodriguez 0-2). Fouled out--Baruch College (NY)-Karis, Louie; Burzo, John; Fadika, Cheick; Marnika, Sime, New Jersey City University-None. Rebounds-Baruch College (NY) 52 (Fadika, Cheick 11), New Jersey City University 52 (Devin Davis 18). Assists-Baruch College (NY) 15 (Alesi, Chris 6), New Jersey City University 22 (Javier Rodriguez 6). Total fouls-Baruch College (NY) 31, New Jersey City University 25. A-362 Championship game of the 2004 NJCU Gothic Knight Tip-Off Tournament. NJCU wins third consecutive Gothic Knight Tip-Off Tournament championship. NJCU's Davis Most Outstanding Player. Abraham Williams-All-Tournament team. Baruch's Chris Alesi and Cheick Fadika named to the All-Tournament team.