Union, NJ …The College of New Jersey men's basketball team stormed past Kean University 80-65 in a New Jersey Athletic Conference match-up on Wednesday night in Union, NJ.
 
The Lions never trailed and poured in a season-high 80 points, shooting 55 percent from the floor. They claimed their third straight NJAC victory, evening their league record at 4-4 and improving to 8-7 overall. The Cougars fell to 3-11 on the season and 1-7 in the NJAC.
 
Senior Skyelar Ettin (Princeton, NJ/Princeton) led five TCNJ players who reached double figures in the game. He sizzled from the field, connecting on 7-of-11 shots and 6-of-9 from the behind the arc to finish with 21 points. Senior Jayson Johnson (Bordentown, NJ/Life Center Academy) tallied up 19 points, while junior Bobby Brackett (Lawrenceville, NJ/Lawrence) posted another double double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
 
TCNJ gave Kean fits from long distance in the opening half, piling up eight buckets from three-point range to spearhead a 41-29 halftime lead. Ettin accounted for five long balls, while sophomore Eric Klacik (Basking Ridge, NJ/Ridge) and Johnson also hit from downtown.
 
Ettin didn't waste any time showing his hot hand, draining a three-pointer just 15 seconds into the game. He put the Lions ahead 16-7 with another shot from long distance before Klacik followed with his first 3 to extend the lead to 19-7 with 13:40 remaining in the half.
 
The lead grew to as large as 15 points when Johnson hit a jumper with 3:39 left on the clock. The Cougars scrapped for five straight points to curtail the deficit, but TCNJ never lost command. They did an exceptional job taking care of the basketball in the opening 20 minutes, committing just a single turnover
 
A three-pointer by Cougar Tommy Soulias (Milltown, NJ/Spotswood) allowed Kean to close the gap to 45-39 in the second half, but that would be as close as they would come. Freshman Eric Murdock, Jr. (Bridgewater, NJ/Bridgewater-Raritan) answered with back-to-back jumpers to pad the cushion. Ettin drilled his final three-pointer of the night with 9:05 left in the game to put the Lions up by 17 and out of reach.
 
Murdock, Jr. put forth another solid outing with 11 points, four assists and three steals. Klacik finished with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting. TCNJ was also proficient from the free throw line, depositing 21-of-25 foul shots. Brackett hit 9-of-19 and Johnson was 8-of-9 from the charity stripe.
 
Soulias enjoyed a terrific individual performance and led all scorers with 26 points. Senior J.J. Hadlik (Bayonne, NJ/St. Peter's Prep) added 11 points in the loss.
 
TCNJ held a 32-23 advantage in rebounds.
 
The Lions are back in action on Saturday afternoon when they visit William Paterson University. They tip off against the Pioneers at 3 p.m.