Junior guard Kelvin DeLosAngeles added a career-high 11 points for William Paterson (11-4), which endured a 21-4 run by Farmingdale State (7-5) spanning the first and second halves before its offense clicked and its defense held the Rams to 25.0 percent shooting over the final 20 minutes.
Freshman guard Peter Lipka paced Farmingdale with 13 points, while junior guard Dashawn Warren finished with 11 points, seven assists and six rebounds.
William Paterson led 25-14 in the first half, before Farmingdale ran off 11 straight points to tie the game at 25-all entering halftime. The Rams then scored 10 of the first 14 points in the second half to take a 35-29 lead at the 17:18 mark. The Pioneers' defense proceeded to put the clamps on Farmingdale, holding them to just four free throws over the next 13 minutes as the Rams went 0-for-13 from the floor and turned the ball over 10 times. A 3-pointer by Rams' freshman guard Brandon Nieves at the 4:18 mark ended the drought and made the score 56-42, but his team never got closer than 10 points the rest of the way.
Junior forward Miguel Rodriguez finished a point short of his second career double-double, ending with nine points, 14 rebounds and four steals. Junior guard Mario Rivero also dropped in nine points and sophomore forward Luis Martinez added eight as William Paterson shot 47.2 percent (25-for-53) from the field, including 60.9 percent (14-for-23) in the second half.
Senior forward Damien McKenzie added 12 points, including Farmingdale State's first seven of the first half. The Rams shot just 32.7 percent (17-for-52) for the game.
The Pioneers return to action Wednesday, Jan. 19, when they travel to Rutgers-Camden for a New Jersey Athletic Conference contest at 8 p.m. Farmingdale State hosts Skyline Conference rival Centenary on Monday, Jan. 18, at 7:30 p.m.