EWING, N.J. – The TCNJ men's basketball team was unable to overcome a frigid shooting performance from the outside as visiting Montclair State pulled away in the second half for a 78-71 NJAC victory on Wednesday night.
Nick Koch netted 24 points and
Matthew Solomon produced 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Lions (11-4, 4-4), who were just 4-for-21 from 3-point range while the black-clad visitors managed to drain a dozen treys in ending TCNJ's winning streak at four games.
Despite a red-hot start from Koch, who made his first four shots – one twisting drive after another – in the first four minutes and change, the Red Hawks (10-5, 5-3) gradually began to take control and led by as many as 11 on a 3-pointer by Kabrien Goss with 3:36 left before half.
TCNJ, however, closed the half with a critical 9-2 spurt, closing to within 31-27 on a baby hook from Solomon and ending the period on another bucket from the big man with an assist to Koch.
Despite going 0-for-8 from 3-point range and committing eight turnovers, the Lions must have counted themselves fortunate to be down only four at the break, especially when Montclair had made six long balls in the opening frame.
The Lions continued to struggle from range but began to impose their will on the offensive glass in the second stanza, Solomon and
Matthew Okorie each scoring on put-backs in the early portions of the frame to keep pace as Montclair State amassed a nine-point advantage (46-37).
After 10 team misfires beyond the arc,
David Alexandre broke the ice from distance with an NBA-range step-back 3 as the shot clock wound down to get the blue and gold within 46-44 at the 14:18 mark.
Solomon continued his dominance on the glass with another offensive board and hook shot, but Jacob Morales came back on the other end with a deep triple to put Montclair ahead, 57-49, with 10:50 to play, and then scored on the interior for a double-digit spread. A 3-pointer then gave the Red Hawks a 62-49 lead as the clock ticked under 8 minutes.
By the time Solomon made a pair of free throws with 7:28 remaining, the visitors had exploded on a 10-0 run to lead by 15, 64-49. The margin swelled as large as 19 on two occasions, the last at 74-55 with 3:49 remaining.
TCNJ gave itself a glimmer of hope with an 11-0 run over the next three minutes, whittling the deficit down to single digits at 74-66. Montclair, however, iced the game with four straight free throws, and
Jack Vreeswyk's 3-pointer just before the buzzer set the final margin to seven.
FOR THE FOES
- It was all Morales for Montclair as the wing exploded for 27 points on 10-of-18 from the field, making all but one of his six 3-point efforts
- Goss and Myles Primas had 11 apiece, and Mike Jackson finished with nine
STANDOUT LIONS
- Koch paced the pride with 24 points on 8-of-18 shooting, adding five assists and four rebounds
- Solomon was 6-of-11 from the field and grabbed six offensive rebounds
- Okorie finished with 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting
- David Alexandre had 10 points and Vreeswyk landed on eight
- Koch and Okorie had three steals apiece
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- MSU shot 57.1 percent in the second half (16-of-28) and 47.4 percent for the night (27-for-57), making 12 of 27 from distance (44.4 percent)
- TCNJ's four 3-pointers were easily a season low, and marked just the Lions' fourth game with fewer than 10 triples
- TCNJ dominated in the paint (44-28) and held a 37-30 advantage on the glass, including 19 offensive rebounds
- The Lions had 17 turnovers to just eight assists
NOTES
- Solomon notched his 20th career double-double
- With six rebounds, Okorie moved into 17th in program history with 410 for his career
UP NEXT
- TCNJ heads to New Jersey City on Saturday
