Box Score

IMMACULATA, PA – The Rowan University men’s basketball team opened the 2011-12 season with a 71-69 victory over Immaculata University on Tuesday night.

The Profs were led by forward Jason Sofman (so. West Milford, NJ/West Milford) with 19 points and 13 rebounds.  Forward Rich McNamara (so. Southampton, NJ/Seneca) registered 15 points.  Center Dee Benson (so. Somerdale, NJ/Sterling) posted 14 points and seven boards.  Guard Jason Rosenberg (so. Wayne, NJ/Wayne Valley) contributed with six points and six assists.  Guard Kendall White (jr. Lumberton, NJ/Rancocas Valley Reg.) added six points and six rebounds.  Guard Matt Rosengrant (so. Toms River, NJ/Toms River E.) scored seven points off the bench.

For the Mighty Macs, guard Jarrell Gardner (jr. Bridgeport, PA/Norristown) tallied 17 points and five rebounds.  Guard Nelson Torres (jr. Marlton, NJ/Cherokee) recorded 15 points.  Guards Jeffone Hill (jr. Bridgeville, DE/Caesar Rodney) and T.J. Klinger (jr. Audubon, PA/Methacton) scored 10 points apiece.  Hill also grabbed eight boards, while Klinger had six.  Forwards Todd Stokely (jr. Conshohocken, PA/LaSalle) and William DeSantis (fr. Marlton, NJ/Cherokee) had eight and seven points respectively.

The game was tied (65-65) with 3:31 remaining in the second period.  Rowan had back-to-back layups by White (2:23) and McNamara (2:06) for a 69-65 advantage.  Hill’s two free throws at 1:46 brought Immaculata within two (69-67).  Rosenberg converted a foul shot at 1:15.  Gardner hit a jumper with 1:01 left to cut the deficit to one (70-69).  Sofman’s free throw with eight seconds on the clock sealed the win.  He totaled 11 points and eight rebounds in the second half.  Gardner had nine points for Immaculata.

At 18:09 in the second half, the score was, 42-42.  The Profs went on a 12-0 run to go ahead,    54-42 at 12:29.  Rosengrant tallied seven of the 12 points.  The Mighty Macs had an 11-4 surge to pull within five (58-53) at 9:54.  Gardner hit a three-pointer, a layup and two free throws.  Sofman had a layup at 7:56 and Rowan was up by five (62-57).  Hill (7:46) and Klinger (5:39) each had a basket to make the score, 62-61.  Benson sunk a foul shot at 4:33 to extend the advantage to four (65-61).  Nelson made two free throws (4:33) and DeSantis had a layup (3:31) to tie the game at 65.

In the first half, the score was tied three times with the last one coming at 13:03 (14-14).  Immaculata registed the next six points for a 20-14 lead at 9:40.  Gardner hit a three-pointer and Klinger had a layup and a foul shot.  Sofman’s layup at 5:31 brought Rowan within two (26-24).  The Might Macs answered with six straight points to go ahead, 32-24 at 3:46.  Gardner had five of the six points. 
McNamara nailed a three-pointer (3:30) and Benson had a layup (2:58) to come within three   (32-29).  Klinger made a free throw (2:47) and Hill had a foul shot (2:37) and a basket (2:14) to extend the advantage to seven (36-29).  With 1:21 on the clock, Immaculata was up, 38-31 following a jumper by Torres.  Sofman had two straight baskets to make the score, 38-35 with 50 seconds remaining.  Torres’ two free throws with 11 seconds left gave the Might Macs a 40-35 halftime lead.  In the period, Stokley and Torres posted eight points apiece.  Benson and McNamara had 10 and nine points respectively for the Profs.

Rowan travels to the Rinso Marquette Tournament on Saturday-Sunday, November 19-20.  On Saturday, the Profs play Wesley College at 6 p.m. followed by Gallaudet against host Lebanon Valley College at 8 p.m.  The consolation and championship are on Sunday at 1 and 3 p.m. respectively.