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EWING, N.J. – The TCNJ men's basketball team will open the 2019 NJAC Tournament on Saturday at Montclair State at 1 p.m. The Lions are looking to advance to the tournament semifinals for the fourth time in head coach Matt Goldsmith's four seasons at the helm. The Lions enter as the No. 6 seed while Montclair State is the No. 3 seed.
 
TICKET INFORMATION
Ticket prices for all rounds of the 2018-19 NJAC Men's Basketball Championship are $5.00 for adults, $2.00 for students (with ID), $2.00 for senior citizens and $2.00 for children. All ticket sales are cash only.
 
THE SEASON SERIES
The Lions and Red Hawks split their season series this year with both teams winning at home. The Lions defeated the Red Hawks, 93-83, in Packer Hall on Dec. 8. Randall Walko scored a career-high 34 points in the victory. He scored 16 of those points in the first 6:45 of the game.
 
Montclair State evened the season series by holding serve on its home court with a 72-63 victory on Jan. 26. Walko and Niall Carpenter each scored 16 points to lead the Lions' offense, but TCNJ shot just 35.9 percent from the floor in the game.
 
PLAYOFF HISTORY
When it comes to meeting in the NJAC Tournament, there is no history between the two teams. Saturday marks the first postseason game between TCNJ and Montclair State.
 
ENTERING THE PLAYOFFS
The Lions enter the NJAC Tournament on a bit of a slide, losing three straight games and six of their past eight. Montclair State had its own three-game losing streak in late January and early February, but the Red Hawks recovered to win their final two regular season games to clinch the No. 3 seed in the bracket.
 
THREE-POINT SHOOTING COULD BE THE KEY
If the Lions were to make a run in the NJAC Tournament, the key likely lies in the team's ability to make shots from three-point range. TCNJ shoots more three pointers than anyone in the league and nearly anyone in the nation. The Lions' 774 three-point attempts rank eighth nationally. The Lions also rank first in the NJAC and 19^th nationally in three pointers made with 253.
 
In its three-game losing streak, TCNJ has shot 28.6 percent, 25.8 percent and 23.1 percent, respectively, from three-point range in those games. The cold spell brought the team's overall three-point percentage down to 32.7 percent, ninth in the NJAC for the season.
 
WALKO LEADS NJAC IN SCORING
Junior guard Randall Walko continues to lead the NJAC in scoring, averaging 19.6 points per game. Walko has scored 470 points so far this season, good for 13^th place on the school's single-season list. He has a strong chance of moving up two spots on Saturday. He needs two points to surpass Bill Burr (1997-98) and five points to surpass his former teammate and current assistant coach, Eric Murdock ,Jr. (2017-18). Murdock is also eighth on the list for the 535 points he scored in 2015-16.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
The winner of Saturday's game will travel to second-seeded Rowan for a semifinal matchup on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. The NJAC does not reseed its bracket.