Box Score

MONTCLAIR, N.J. – The William Paterson men's basketball team (14-7, 5-4 NJAC) earned an important New Jersey Athletic Conference victory, defeating intra-divisional rival Montclair State (9-10, 3-6 NJAC) 48-45 Jan. 31.

With the victory, the Pioneers moved into a tie for third place with Rutgers-Newark (5-4 NJAC) in the North Division standings. The top three teams in each division will qualify for the NJAC Tournament.

William Paterson led 22-14 at the half, but a 12-3 Montclair State run gave the Red Hawks a 28-25 edge with 12:10 to play. MSU still was ahead with 4:07 remaining (40-39), but Luis Martinez (Passaic, N.J./Clifton) quickly gave the lead back to the Pioneers on the next possession when he scored from close range. Joey Spiegel (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) made a steal and drove the length of the floor for a layup with 1:42 to go, and Tim Lucas (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) extended the lead to 45-40 as he hit two foul shots with 36 seconds to play. Mike Hern (Hamburg, NJ/Walkill Valley) brought the Red Hawks within three with a basket with 23 seconds left, but Joseph Ellis (Newark, N.J./Newark Science) and Lucas each added a free throw, the second by Lucas with 10 seconds left making the score 47-42. Donald Reid's (Perth Amboy, NJ/Cardinal McCarey) three with 0:02 remaining cut the advantage to two (47-45), but Martinez closed out the game with a 1-for-2 trip to the free-throw line.

Spiegel had 14 points for the Pioneers, while Martinez scored 10. Shawn Colwell (Irvington, N.J./Irvington) added six tallies and a team-best eight rebounds.

The Pioneers will finish a two-game road swing Saturday, Feb. 3, at Richard Stockton at 2:00 p.m.