MONTCLAIR, N.J. (January 21, 2017) – The Rutgers University-Newark men's basketball team held host Montclair State University to 29.2 percent shooting en route to a clutch 49-41 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) road win Saturday afternoon in the Panzer Athletic Center, erasing an early 10-point deficit in the process.
 
With the win, Rutgers-Newark improves to 4-7 in the NJAC and 5-13 overall, while Montclair State drops to 9-8 overall and 6-4 in the league. The Scarlet Raiders will look for another victory Wednesday night in The Golden Dome against conference rival Kean University.

NJAC Standings

R-N limited Montclair to just 15 points in the second half while scoring 29 of its own, and sophomore forward Mark Thomas scored 10 of his 15 points on 4-of-5 shooting. The Red Hawks shot just 12 percent from the field over the final 20 minutes, connecting on 3-of-25 shots and turning the ball over eight times.
 
Both defenses played well in the first half as a total of just 46 points were scored. Rutgers-Newark shot just 28 percent from the field, but went 4-for-8 from deep, getting late triples from freshmen forward Landon Gaines and freshman guard Chase Barneys to slice into a 22-12 deficit. The Gaines three-pointer ended a stretch of more than seven minutes without a point for Rutgers-Newark, but defense kept the Raiders in the game as the two teams went into the locker room with MSU holding a 26-20 lead.
 
Barneys and Gaines each hit two three's in the first, and big-man Kenya Brown had three points, five rebounds and one steal.
 
Rutgers-Newark turned up the defensive pressure even more to start the second, holding the Red Hawks off the scoreboard for an excellent 6:10 while scoring the first seven markers of the period to take a 27-26 lead. Gaines' third three of the game gave Newark the lead, and both Mike Vick and Thomas hit shots for the Scarlet Raiders.
 
MSU pulled in front around the 11-minute mark, but Rutgers-Newark responded with its second run of the half, getting a big three from Thomas as part of a 9-0 rally that gave the guests a 36-30 edge with exactly nine minutes on the clock.
 
Barneys' third three of the afternoon helped Rutgers-Newark to a seven-point lead (39-32) with 6:19 left, and the Scarlet Raider defense continued to suffocate MSU on its home court. A Thomas jumper with 1:21 to go helped R-N to a 46-38 advantage, and the Red Hawks could get no closer than six the rest of the way.
 
Thomas finished with 15 points, four rebounds and two blocks, going 6-for-9 from the floor, and Gaines had 13 points, two rebounds and a steal. Barneys totaled nine points, five rebounds and four assists, and Vick notched six points, three boards and two helpers. Senior forward Nadir Alston led the Raider reserves, totaling three points, a team-high seven rebounds, three steals and two rejections.
 
R-N ended the game shooting 31.9 percent from the field, 43.8 percent from deep and 12-for-15 at the line, racking up 31 rebounds, seven thefts and five blocked shots.
 
Montclair State finished shooting 29.2 percent from the floor, 2-for-17 from range and 11-for-18 at the stripe. The Red Hawks were plus-10 on the glass (41-31), but had just three assists and 19 turnovers.
 
Veteran forward Brandon Channer led MSU with a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Rutgers-Newark will look to make it two big conference wins in a row against Kean on Wednesday. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m.

NOTES:
-Rutgers-Newark swept Montclair State this year, also defeating the Red Hawks in early December. The Raiders have now beat the Red Hawks in 11-straight meetings.