NEW YORK, NY – Despite a team-high 19 points from junior guard James Johnson, the Scarlet Raiders fell to New York University, 76-74, in the semifinal round of the ECAC Metro Division III Championship.

NCAA Box Score & Play-by-Play

Junior Phil Barnes netted 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while senior swingman David Cherry put forth a 14-point, 5-assist, 5-rebound, 4-steal effort in his final game in Scarlet and Black. Freshman guard Greg Moore  tallied 12 points on five for nine shooting in the loss.

Trailing 13-11 following a Derek Becker jumper, the Scarlet Raiders mounted over the next two and a half minutes of action to take an 18-13 advantage following a Moore triple at the 11:57 mark.

Still up five following a David Cherry  layup at 8:07, the Violets mounted a 13-1 run sparked by Chip Borsi triple, to take a 32-25 lead following an Andy Stein layup at 3:41. NYU would up their advantage to nine entering the intermission after a Keith Jensen tip-in second before the first half buzzer.

Undeterred the Scarlet Raiders would mount an 18-10 run over the first 10 minutes of the second stanza to slice the deficit to one following a Cherry jumper at 10:29.

Jensen would push the lead to four on the Violets ensuing possession, but Rutgers-Newark would regain the lead with a Johnson three-pointer at 8:29. Johnson would net his second straight triple on the Scarlet Raiders next possession to increase the Rutgers-Newark lead to four with 7:42 remaining.

NYU would regain the lead with a Richie Polan jumper at 4:13, but Moore would once again put the Scarlet Raiders ahead with a layup at the 2:43 mark.

But Jensen would lead the Violets down the stretch netting seven of the team's final nine points, including a four-for-four showing from the charity stripe, to seal the NYU victory.

Jensen finished with a game-high 30 points on 8-for-14 shooting, while Polan netted nine points, with eight rebounds and five assists. Senior John Mish finished with eight points and eight assists in the win.

Rutgers-Newark finishes the season 17-13 with a 7-6 New Jersey Athletic Conference record.