Box Score NEWARK, NJ – The Rutgers-Newark men's basketball team defeated Rowan University, 83-58 on Sunday in the first round of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Championship Tournament.
The Scarlet Raiders (18-8) advance to the semifinals at the top seed Stockton University (20-5) on Tuesday, February 24 at 7 p.m. The Profs end the season with a 16-10 record. Rutgers-Newark was the fourth seed and Rowan was fifth in the conference tournament.
In the other first round game, the sixth seed New Jersey City University won 74-60 over the third seed The College of New Jersey. The second seed William Paterson University (19-6) hosts NJCU (13-13) in the semifinals on Tuesday (Feb. 24) at 7 p.m. The two semifinal winners meet in the conference final on Friday, February 27 at the higher seed.
Forward Jordan McDaniel (jr. Colonia, NJ/Colonia) led the Scarlet Raiders with a game-high 25 points and eight rebounds. Guard Doze Ikwuegbu (sr. Union, NJ/Union) contributed with 18 points and guard Chris Foreman (sr. Union, NJ/Union) chipped in with 15. Forward/center Elvis Hodzic (sr. Budd Lake, NJ/Mt. Olive) grabbed eight boards while guard/forward Christian Garcia (sr. Freehold, NJ/Freehold) and forward David Azoroh (jr. Ewing, NJ/Ewing) had six apiece. Foreman and Garcia each dished six assists. Rutgers-Newark ended the game with 12 three-pointers in 18 attempts.
For Rowan, forward
Ike Robinson (jr. Trenton, NJ/Conwell-Egan Catholic (PA)) scored 13 points. Guard
Kris O'Connor (jr. Mount Laurel, NJ/Paul VI) and forward
Daniel Waynick (sr. East Windsor, NJ/Hightstown) each totaled 10 points. Forward
Mike Simpson (sr. Sicklerville, NJ/Winslow Twp.) added six points and eight rebounds.
Rutgers-Newark started the game with a 16-6 run in 8:57. McDaniel nailed three three-pointers, Ikwuegbu scored five points and Azoroh had a basket. Rowan trailed by six (18-12) after two foul shots by Robinson at 8:47. The Scarlet Raiders tallied eight straight points to lead 26-12 with 7:26 remaining. Ikwuegbu's three made the score 29-15 at 3:38. Forward
Skylar Moore (jr. Westville, NJ/Hempstead (NY)) had a layup (3:09) and the Profs were down by 12 (29-17). Rutgers-Newark closed the half with nine unanswered points for a 21-point advantage (38-17) at the break. In the surge, Ikwuegbu produced four points while McDaniel and Garcia registered three and two points respectively. Ikwuegbu was the scoring leader in the period with 15 points and McDaniel followed with 12.
In the second stanza, Rowan pulled within 17 points (40-23) with a layup (16:41) by O'Connor. Foreman drained a three-pointer (14:35), which made the score 48-25. McDaniel sank two free throws (12:38) for a 23-point lead (54-31). The Profs had a 5-0 spurt and the score was 54-36 with 10:22 in the clock. Simpson had a jumper and foul shot (11:42) and Robinson contributed two points at the line (10:22). Ikwuegbu hit a three at 6:25 and Rutgers-Newark led by 24 (62-38). The closest the Profs came for the remainder of the game was 19 points (64-45) after Moore's layup at 5:43.
