Box Score EWING, N.J. - Rutgers University-Newark rallied to tie The College of New Jersey twice in the second half, but a late Lion run led to a 74-62 Scarlet Raider loss in a New Jersey Athletic Conference game in Packer Hall.
TCNJ (12-8, NJAC 8-5) pulled into a third place tie in the NJAC standings with Rutgers-Newark (14-6, NJAC 8-5). It was the Lions' fourth straight league win and TCNJ earned a split of the regular season series with the Raiders.
Junior forward
Jordan McDaniel, who paced the Raiders with 17 points, nine rebounds and three steals, had five points during an 11-2 Rutgers-Newark surge to bring the visitors to within two points at 45-43 with 12 minutes remaining.
A McDaniel layup with 8:12 left drew the Raiders even at 47-47 and a pair of free throws by senior guard
Doze Ikwuegbu leveled the score again at 55-55 with 4:12 on the clock, but TCNJ never let Rutgers-Newark taste the lead.
Freshman guard Eric Murdock, who tied McDaniel for game scoring honors with 17, netted seven points to fuel the decisive 13-0 TCNJ run which staked the Lions to a 68-57 lead with 39 seconds remaining.
Rutgers-Newark junior forward
David Azoroh scored 12 of his 16 points in the first half and finished with four rebounds, a game-high four steals and three assists. Senior swingman
Christian Garcia added a dozen points and five rebounds for the Raiders while Ikwuegbu posted nine points. Sophomore guard
Darrian Collins chipped in eight points, three assists and two steals.
Murdock added a game-high five assists while senior forward Bobby Brackett contributed 10 points and nine rebounds for the Lions. Sophomore guard Skyelar Ettin connected on four of eight shots from beyond the arc to finish with 14 points while freshman forward Elias Bermudez made both of his jumpers from long range on his way to a dozen points.
The Lions took a 36-25 lead into the break after shooting 53.8% (14-26) from the floor during the first 20 minutes. After an Azoroh jumper gave the Raiders a 9-7 lead with 13:52 on the clock, TCNJ reeled off an 11-0 run behind seven points by sophomore guard Eric Klacik. A Klacik trey pushed the Lions' lead to 18-9 with 8:42 remaining in the period. Ettin, who totaled 11 points in the first half, gave TCNJ its biggest lead of the half with 3-point jumper just four seconds before the buzzer.
Rutgers-Newark hosts Kean University in an NJAC doubleheader on Wednesday night in The Golden Dome Arena. The women's game tips off at 6 with the men to follow at 8.
