EWING, N.J. – The TCNJ men's basketball team didn't lose its shooting touch on Wednesday night after a near-record performance in a win against Centre last Saturday. The Lions followed that 21-make night from three-point range with 12 more in a 79-60 victory over Misericordia on Wednesday at Packer Hall.
TCNJ (8-5) jumped out to a 15-6 led thanks to a pair of three-point makes from
Jordan Glover and another by
Niall Carpenter. Misericordia scored nine straight to tie it with 12:57 left in the first half, and the score stayed within a possession or two through the meat of the first half.
Ryan Jensen hit a three to push the lead to 30-23, and
Randall Walko followed with a bucket to extend the lead to nine with 5:55 left.
Another flurry of threes later in the half took the lead into double figures. Walko made it 35-24 with a three, and
Liam Byrne and Jensen each hit from three-point range later in the stretch.
Travis Jocelyn scored on the fast break with 2:07 left in the first half to give TCNJ its largest lead to that point, 43-26. Jocelyn's hoop finished an 11-2 TCNJ run in just over two minutes of game action.
Walko hit a three early in the second half to give TCNJ its first 20-point lead of the game, and it stayed in that stratosphere through most of the second half. It grew to as many as 28 after a pair of Jocelyn free throws with 11:22 remaining gave TCNJ a 67-39 advantage. Misericordia managed to trim the lead back to the teens by the buzzer.
TCNJ held Misericordia to just 31.9 percent from the floor and just 9.1 percent (2-for-22) from three-point range. The Lions also more than doubled the Cougars in fast-break points, 26-12.
Jensen finished with 11 rebounds, grabbing nine of them in the first half. He had eight points and a pair of blocks to go with the boards. Walko scored 16 points to lead the Lions' attack. Glover scored 13 and
P.J. Ringel had 10 points, five assists and three steals.
The Lions did not attempt a free throw in the first half, but their 76.5 percent (13-17) mark in the second half helped them keep Misericordia at a distance.
TCNJ stays in the friendly confines of Packer Hall for a dive back into NJAC play on Saturday against Ramapo. The men's team opens the doubleheader on Saturday with a tip at 1 p.m. The women follow at 3 p.m.
