EWING, N.J. – The TCNJ men's basketball team used a 13-0 run to open the second half in an explosive offensive effort as the Lions defeated Stockton, 99-88, on Wednesday night at Packer Hall. TCNJ shot 56.7 percent from the field after shooting better than 60 percent for the majority of the contest.
 
The Lions also got Randall Walko's third 30-plus point effort of the season. He hit 30 on the nose, thanks to seven three pointers and 10 total field goals. He went 7-for-11 from three-point range, but he made seven of his first eight from downtown.
 
The 13-0 run to open the second half turned a 54-50 halftime lead for Stockton into a 63-54 TCNJ lead in the matter of three minutes. Ryan Jensen scored seven of the points on that run on the strength of two three pointers.
 
It fueled a strong second half for the Lions, a half in which TCNJ shot 58.6 percent. The 13-point run bought the Lions some breathing room, and Stockton immediately came back to make it 65-62. The Lions scored eight straight at that point, bookended by a Jensen three-point play and a Walko three pointer at 14:06. Jensen had 17 points.
 
Stockton cut the lead back to six briefly, but it stuck in double digits for good on a Mike Walley three pointer to make it 80-69 with 10:43 left to play. The only drama that remained involved the Lions trying to hit 100 points for the first time since Dec. 2017, but they came up just a point short of that mark.
 
The Lions, the NJAC leader in both three pointers made and three pointers attempted, lived up to that billing in the early going. The Lions started the game 6-for-8 from three-point range in the opening 3:56. Walko got things started with two three pointers in the first 55 seconds of the game.
 
After a P.J. Ringel layup, Walko nailed two more three pointers on consecutive possessions. The second make gave the Lions a 14-7 lead. Walko had 12 points in the first 2:55 of game action. Jensen and Niall Carpenter added three pointers to give the Lions a 22-14 lead with 16:04 left in the first half.
 
Ringel had 11 points and five assists, and Carpenter had nine points and six rebounds.
 
The Lions led for the majority of the first half, but Stockton went on a 12-0 run to take the lead in the final few minutes of the period. Stockton turned a 39-30 deficit into a 42-39 lead with that run. Stockton carried a 54-50 lead into halftime.
 
Jordan Glover finished with 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting.
 
TCNJ hits the road for a Saturday night tilt at Rutgers-Newark. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m.