Box Score
WAYNE, N.J. -- Back-to-back three-pointers by Joey Spiegel (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) and Samir Sanu (Edison, N.J./Sayreville) with less than three minutes to play helped the William Paterson men's basketball team (12-6, 3-3 NJAC) stave off Rowan (13-3, 3-2 NJAC), 68-66, Jan. 20 at the WPU Rec Center.
Thomas Baker's fast-break layup pulled the Profs within three (59-56, 3:41), but Spiegel's three, followed by another Baker layup and Sanu's triple, made it a seven-point contest (65-58) with 2:39 to play. Tim Bowser sank a pair of free throws for Rowan (65-60, 2:29), and following a 1-for-2 effort at the line by WPU's Luis Martinez (Passaic, N.J./Clifton), Matt Byrne's putback again made it a four-point contest (66-62, 1:11). Spiegel and Byrnes traded 2-for-2 trips to the charity stripe (68-64, 0:25), followed by another second-chance bucket by Byrnes with 12 seconds to play (68-66). Following a Pioneer turnover, the Profs had one last chance, but Dwayne Reevey's leaner from the left wing found the back of the iron as time expired.
The Pioneers scored the first five points of the season half, the start of a 13-5 run that gave them a 37-26 lead with 14:13 to play. Rowan cut the lead to three several times, and were trailing by just two (49-47) with 7:24 on the clock, but William Paterson scored 10 of the next 11 points for a commanding 59-48 advantage with 5:01 to play. The Profs then put together an 8-0 run of their own, capped by Baker's bucket (59-56, 3:41).
The first half saw almost twice as many turnovers (22) as successful field goals (13), as the two teams shot a combined 13-of-48. The Pioneers made nine of their 25 attempts (.360), more than double what the Profs shot from the floor (4-23, .174), but Rowan made 12 of 15 free throws (.800) compared to William Paterson's 5-of-8 (.625) effort, and the Pioneers led by just three at the intermission (24-21).
Both teams were much more efficient in the second half, as WPU connected on 50.0 (15-30) percent of its attempts and Rowan made 48.1 (13-27) percent of its shots in the second stanza.
Martinez led three Pioneers in double figures with his 15 points. Sanu had 13 tallies, while Spiegel finished with 10. Sophomore Tim Lucas (Old Bridge, N.J./ Old Bridge) dished a game-best seven assists, and freshman Abdoulaye Ouedraogo (Newark, N.J./Newark Science) led William Paterson with six rebounds and four blocked shots. Baker paced Rowan with 25 points, while Byrnes had a double-double with 20 tallies and 10 rebounds.
The win snapped a three-game conference losing streak for the Pioneers, and ended Rowan's winning streak at 10 games.
William Paterson was again playing short-handed, currently without the services of starters John Rother (Sodus Point, N.Y./Sodus Central) and Jason Cameron (Cliffside Park, N.J./Cliffside Park) due to injuries.
The Pioneers will return to action Wednesday, Jan. 24, at The College of New Jersey at 7:00 p.m.
