EWING, N.J. (January 10, 2018) – The Rutgers University-Newark men's basketball nearly overcame a 15-point second-half deficit to host The College of New Jersey, but the Lions prevailed by a 76-65 final Wednesday night in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) action.
 
Rutgers-Newark falls to 5-9 overall and 1-7 in league play, while TCNJ moves to 11-3 overall and 6-1 in the NJAC. The Scarlet Raiders will look to get back into the win column Saturday night when they host Rowan University in a conference contest inside The Golden Dome.
 
After trailing by 12 points at intermission and 15 points early in the second half, the Scarlet Raiders roared back to tie the game at 49. Unfortunately, Newark would be unable to get over the hump, and the Raiders eventually fell.
 
Three Scarlet Raiders were in double figures, led by the 17 points on 8-of-13 shooting from junior forward Mark Thomas who also added five rebounds. Senior guard Erick Loften-Harris had 15 points and three rebounds, and senior guard Tyler Ofray had 10 points, three rebounds and two assists.
 
Newark shot 44.2 percent from the field, 2-for-13 from three and 17-for-23 at the charity stripe, controlling 32 rebounds and tallying five total blocks. The guests racked up 34 points in the paint and received 31 tallies off the bench.
 
Rutgers-Newark jumped out in front with strong defense, holding TCNJ off the scoreboard for the first 5:13 of action while scoring six points of its own. The Lions responded, scoring 14-straight points to take a 14-6 advantage with 11:55 remaining in the opening half.
 
The hosts' lead hovered between six and eight points for the next few minutes before a layup from R-N guard Chase Barneys with 5:33 left in the period cut the lead to five points (20-15). Unfortunately, the Lions closed the first half strong, eventually settling on a 38-26 lead at the break.
 
Early in the second, TCNJ extended its lead to 15 points, but a resilient Scarlet Raider squad climbed back into the game. Two free throws from Ofray capped a 6-0 run to slice a 13-point deficit to seven with 13:48 left (44-37), and after the Lions went back up 10 (49-39), Newark erupted on a 10-0 run to tie the game at 49. Loften-Harris and Ofray each scored four points in the rally for the Scarlet Raiders, but they could not get over the hump as the Lions netted the next four points.
 
Rutgers-Newark continued to fight, going shot-for-shot with a tough Lion team, but a three-pointer from guard Joe Montano with 4:11 on the clock capped a 7-0 TCNJ run to make it 66-57 in favor of the home team.
 
Thomas and Ofray each put in a pair, and a layup from Barneys with 2:24 left cut the deficit to four (67-63), but TCNJ closed the game with nine of the final 11 points to earn the league win.
 
Rutgers-Newark held TCNJ to 37.9 percent shooting, but the Lions hit 10 three-pointers (10-for-29) and sunk 22-of-29 at the line. TCNJ totaled 41 rebounds and 10 assists, receiving 32 points from its bench. The Lions were led by veteran guard Eric Murdock Jr. who had 23 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Freshman forward Jordan Herrin had nine points and six rebounds for the Raiders, and freshman center Dante Ralph had four rebounds and a career-high three blocked shots.
 
Tip-off Saturday night against Rowan in The Golden Dome is slated for 8 p.m. and fans unable to make it to the Brick City can tune in live at www.rutgersnewarkathletics.com/watch.