NEWARK, N.J. (January 6, 2018) – The Rutgers University-Newark men's basketball team fell to hot-shooting William Paterson University in New Jersey Athletic Conference action in The Golden Dome, 78-59. The Scarlet Raiders move to 5-8 (1-6 NJAC) while the Pioneers improve to 8-6 (3-4 NJAC).

Rutgers-Newark was led by senior Erick Loften-Harris who scored a team-high 17 points on an efficient 8-for-12 shooting from the field in addition to three assists, a block, and a steal. Rookie Quincy Rutherford joined him in double-figures with a career-best 10 points off the pine, going 3-of-5 from the field and a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. Sophomore Tyree Wilson chipped in another nine points off the bench on just three shots while hitting 5-of-6 free throws. Sophomore Chase Barneys led the team with five rebounds.

The Scarlet Raiders had a tough first half as the Pioneers shot lights out from beyond the arc, hitting 10-of-15 (66.7%) on their 3-point attempts. The visitors began the game on a 16-2 run and while R-N was able to pull within 16-8 that was as close as the team would get. WPU continued to pour it on and senior Dapo Badmos capped the period with back-to-back trifectas as his side headed into the break leading 45-23.

The Pioneers continued their momentum in the second half, pushing their advantage to 57-29 with 14:07 on the clock. However, the Scarlet Raiders would fight back led by their bench. A 12-2 surge featuring three freebie from Wilson and a 3-pointer by senior Emmanuel Kema got the deficit down to 18 at the 8:19 mark when Loften-Harris knocked down a jumper. With 2:51 remaining, Wilson brought R-N as close as it would get with a pair of free throws that made it 68-53. Unfortunately, the rally would stop there as William Paterson eventually closed out a 78-59 win.

The Scarlet Raiders face a quick turnaround as they host Penn State-Abington on Monday at 7 p.m. in The Golden Dome.