CAMDEN, N.J. – The TCNJ men's basketball team tipped off the second round of NJAC play with a gritty road win, toughing out a 71-65 decision at Rutgers-Camden on Wednesday night.
 
Nick Koch scored a game-high 22 points and Matthew Okorie put up a 19-point, 10-rebound double-double to help the Lions hold on after the Scarlet Raptors had cut a nine-point deficit down to just one inside of two minutes remaining.
 
FOR THE RECORD

• TCNJ improved to 13-4 overall and 7-3 in the NJAC, while Rutgers-Camden fell to 9-8 (4-6 NJAC). With Ramapo's loss at Rutgers-Newark, the Lions took over sole possession of second in the league standings, one game behind Stockton

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Koch was assertive from the jump, scoring seven of the Lions' first nine points in a tight first half that was still tied, 26-26, at the 3:13 mark
• Jack Vreeswyk made a free throw and a lay-up and Khalid Bakare scored inside to put TCNJ on top for good, and Koch's three-point play in the closing seconds made it 34-29 in favor of the visitors
• The teams continued to trade punches in the early stages of the second half, and Rutgers-Camden twice got within a single point, the second time at 44-43 with 13:47 to go. That's when David Alexandre buried a big 3-pointer, and two more free throws by Vreeswyk upped the margin to six at 49-43
• TCNJ led 54-47 on Koch's 3-pointer with 10:36 to go, and the spread reached nine on Vreeswyk's fourth and fifth made free throws of the night
• The Lions continued to keep the Scarlet Raptors at bay and held a 66-59 advantage on a basket by Matthew Solomon with 3:19 remaining, but Eric Benjamin and Cameron Downs connected on back-to-back 3-pointers to get the hosts within one (66-65) with just 2:22 left
• Out of a timeout, Alexandre knocked down a huge jumper to give TCNJ a 68-65 lead, and the Scarlet Raptors missed four potential game-tying 3-pointers – plus the front end of a one-and-one – before Koch made it a two-possession game with two free throws at 10.4 ticks remaining

FOR THE FOES

• Downs had 20 points and seven rebounds, Benjamin added 17 points, and Cherif Kanoute notched a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds

STANDOUT LIONS

• Koch went 8-of-15 from the floor en route to his 22 points, while Okorie was an efficient 5-for-7 overall plus 7-for-10 at the foul line
• Solomon finished with nine points
• Alexandre (eight) and Vreeswyk (seven) combined for 15 big points off the bench, with Alexandre also logging three assists and three steals
• Jason Larranaga made just one field goal but tallied five rebounds and a team-high four assists

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• TCNJ shot 39.3 percent from the field (22-of-56) but got to the line often, taking 34 foul shots (21-for-34) to just 14 for the hosts
• In a very even affair, both teams made six 3-pointers and TCNJ held a slim 40-39 edge on the boards

NOTES

• TCNJ has won 19 in a row over Rutgers-Camden, whose last win in the series came back on November 25, 2014
• Larranaga played in his 100th career game

UP NEXT

• The Lions head to New Jersey City on Saturday