Box Score

EWING , N.J. – The William Paterson men's basketball team (12-7, 3-4 NJAC) lost a tough decision at The College of New Jersey (11-8, 4-3 NJAC), 56-53, Jan. 24.

William Paterson trailed by as many as 10 (45-35, 13:04) in the second stanza, but a furious rally was capped by Da-Shawn Dwight's (Newark, N.J./Bloomfield Tech) three-pointer with 6:37 to play, giving the Pioneers a 50-49 edge. The Lions answered with a bucket to regain the lead (51-50, 3:38), and then split two-shot trips to the free-throw line three different times to own a 54-51 advantage with 19 seconds on the clock. Junior Joey Spiegel (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) buried a three-pointer to again make it a one-point game (53-54, 0:10) and William Paterson immediately fouled after the inbounds play, but TCNJ's Jay Frank made both free throws to again push the Lions ahead by three (56-53, 0:08). Senior Luis Martinez ( Passaic, N.J./Clifton) had a chance to force overtime, but his three-point attempt missed in the game's closing seconds.

Dwight led the Pioneers with his season-best 19 points. Spiegel chipped in nine tallies, while Tim Lucas (Old Bridge, N.J./ Old Bridge) and Shawn Colwell ( Irvington, N.J./Irvington) each collected eight rebounds.

The three-point loss to the Lions marked the fifth time in the last seven outings that a William Paterson game has been decided by seven or fewer points. The Pioneers have posted a 1-4 record in those contests.

The Pioneers will return home to face Kean Saturday, Jan. 27, at 1:00 p.m. WPU will host “Take a Kid to the Game Day” at the Rec Center, and children 14 and under will be admitted for free to the doubleheader, which will conclude with a 3:00 p.m. women's contest against the Cougars. Among the events planned will be a visit by JJ Jumper, the NCAA's basketball mascot.