GALLOWAY, N.J. – Matthew Solomon's monster performance powered the TCNJ men's basketball team past Stockton, 78-69, for an impressive NJAC road win on Wednesday night.
 
Solomon scored 18 points and racked up a career-high 20 rebounds – the most by a Lion in nearly a decade – to will TCNJ (8-3, 4-2) to victory against a Stockton squad that is receiving votes in the D3hoops.com national poll.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Ospreys (6-4, 4-2) scored the game's first six points and led by as many as 10 in the first half as D.J. Campbell drilled three 3-pointers, including a four-point play and another trey that gave the hosts a 26-16 lead at the 7:55 mark of the half
• Undaunted, the Lions responded immediately with a 3-pointer from Jack Vreeswyk and a three-point play by Nick Koch
• Back-to-back 3-pointers by Anthony Milligan and James Beckwith fueled a 12-0 run that gave the Lions the lead for good, a burst capped off by a thunderous dunk from Solomon on a fast break to make it 34-29
• The Ospreys got back within one at 36-35, but Koch and Solomon put in consecutive buckets to send TCNJ into the break with a five-point advantage (40-35)
• The margin fluctuated between five and nine points for the first 10 minutes and change of the second half, until Vreeswyk blocked a shot and scored on the break to extend TCNJ's lead to 63-52 with 9:26 remaining
• Koch's three-point play made it 73-60 with 5:13 to go, and the Ospreys made their final push, getting within four on a 9-0 run. Stockton had a chance to get even closer, but Campbell missed a 3-pointer with 1:16 to go, and Koch nailed two free throws at the other end and the Ospreys never scored again

FOR THE FOES

• Campbell, a first-team All-American and the NJAC Player of the Year in 2022, paced Stockton with 21 points
• Martin Anguelov added 13 points and Christian Armstrong-Thomas tallied 10
• TCNJ, which ranks inside the top-40 in Division III in field-goal percentage defense, limited the Ospreys to just 35.4 percent (23-of-65) from the floor

STANDOUT LIONS

• Solomon finished 9-for-16 from the field and grabbed 10 offensive rebounds, helping the Lions to a 42-20 surplus in paint points
• Koch was 6-for-11 from the floor en route to 17 points, five rebounds, and five assists
• Beckwith finished with 12 points and was matched by Matthew Okorie, who also recorded seven boards
• Jason Larranaga hit three 3-pointers and totaled 11 points

NOTES

• Solomon became the first Lion to haul in 20 rebounds since Bobby Brackett had 21 against Rutgers-Camden in February of 2014. His remarkable night helped TCNJ score a 43-41 edge on the glass against the NJAC leader in rebounding margin (+6.0 per game coming into the night)
• The Lions snapped a three-game losing streak against Stockton and won in Galloway for the first time since February 5, 2021
• Larranaga moved into ninth in school history in 3-pointers (127)
• TCNJ already owns road wins over the teams picked first (Rowan) and third (Stockton) in the NJAC preseason poll

UP NEXT

• The Lions are off for two weeks until December 28, when they open the Hat City Classic against host Western Connecticut State at 3 p.m. TCNJ wraps up 2023 with a matchup against Vassar the following day