GLASSBORO, NJ - New Jersey City turned the tables with a strong second half to defeat Rowan, 85-72, in NJAC men's basketball action, in what was the conference home opener for the Profs.
 
Brycen Williams scored 15 points and Michael Pirone had a season-high 14 as he connected on 5-for-9 from the field, while grabbing eight rebounds. Ife Okebiorun made 5-of-7 shots to score 12 with Taz Cantey chipping in 10.
 
Rowan (0-8; 0-3) held a 41-35 halftime lead after a 15-for-26 (57.7 percent) shooting effort in the first. NJCU opened the second half outscoring Rowan, 11-4, in the first three minutes to regain the lead, 46-45. The teams would trade leads until the Gothic Knights rattled off a 10-2 run to go up by 60-53 with over 12 minutes to play.
 
NJCU (5-2; 3-0), which shot 43.8 percent in the second half, extended that lead to 69-59 with 7:49 remaining.
 
The Profs cut it to 70-65 after Chris McCarron connected on a three-pointer at 4:47 but four consecutive points by NJCU built back a nine-point cushion, 74-65. The visitors had a 77-67 lead with 1:31 remaining and then converted 6-of-6 from the foul line down the stretch to secure the win.
 
At the start, NJCU was leading 19-15, but Rowan scored 10 straight points using a 17-4 run to go up, 32-23 at 4:52 with Okebiorun contributing five points in the spurt. Rowan was connecting from the field, hitting 57 percent The Profs took a 41-35 lead into the half after Brycen Williams connected on a three with :05 left.
 
The Profs are home again on Wednesday when they host Kean at 7:30  p.m. before heading to William Paterson on Saturday, December 13, for their last game until after the New Year.