Box Score

WAYNE, N.J. – In a battle of the top two teams in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) men's basketball standings, the Ospreys' Jerome Hubbard drained a jumper with 42 seconds left, breaking a 73-73 tie and helping to lift Richard Stockton (15-5, 8-2 NJAC) to a 78-75 win at William Paterson (16-4, 8-1 NJAC) Feb. 9.

The Ospreys made 14 of their first 18 (.778) shots to stake themselves to a 36-18 game-opening lead (9:44). Mario Lancioni scored 13 of Stockton's points during the run, but William Paterson would not back down. The Pioneers chipped away and ended the half with a 12-4 spurt to get back within reach at 46-38, as WP withstood a 7-for-14 (.500) Stockton shooting effort from beyond the arc during the first half. Lancioni led Richard Stockton into the locker room after scoring 19 first-half points, while senior Jason Cameron (Cliffside Park, N.J./Cliffside Park) and sophomore Abdoulaye Ouedraogo (Newark, N.J./Newark Science) each had 11 for the Pioneers.

William Paterson continued its comeback at the start of the second period, scoring 14 of the first 20 points to deadlock the score at 52-52 with 14:28 to play. Four different Pioneers scored during the run, but Richard Stockton had an answer, ripping off the next 10 tallies for a 62-52 edge (10:53).

Senior Joey Spiegel's (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) three again tied the score, this time at 65-65, and a pair of Bobby Dunn (Garwood, N.J./Johnson Regional) free throws gave WP a 67-65 lead with 6:38 remaining. Kelvin Brown again tied the game with a layup, and the two teams traded the lead until Gabriel Paul (Hillside, N.J./Hillside) nailed a pair of free throws for a 70-69 Pioneer advantage (4:27). Paul's three-point play 77 seconds later, followed by a Jon Greene layup and two Omar Smith free throws, tied the game at 73-73 (1:41), setting up Hubbard's tough jumper in the lane to give the Ospreys the 75-73 edge. Spiegel tried to answer with a three-pointer at the other end, but Hubbard came up with the block, and two Santini Lancioni free throws with 5.1 seconds remaining gave the Ospreys a two-possession cushion (77-73). Paul's layup cut the lead to two, but after a WP foul, Hubbard stepped to the line and made the first of two free throws (78-75, 1.7 seconds), and William Paterson could not get a quality shot off after coming down with the rebound of the miss.

The Pioneers, who began the day as the only undefeated team in the league, remain first overall in the NJAC standings and in the top spot in the North Division (8-1). With the win, the Ospreys remain atop the South Division rankings with an 8-2 mark. The loss snapped an eight-game winning streak for William Paterson, and is the first of 2008 for the Pioneers.

Mario Lancioni finished the game with 24 points for Richard Stockton, followed by Santini Lancioni with 11 and Brown and Fran Kelly with 10 apiece. Greene collected a game-best 15 rebounds for the Ospreys, who connected on 56.9 (29-51) percent of their attempts overall and 52.6 (10-19) percent of their shots from three-point range.

Ouedraogo paced the Pioneers with 17 points and nine rebounds. Paul chipped in 15 tallies, Spiegel had 13 and Cameron 11 as William Paterson was 26-for-56 (.464) from the floor and 7-of-18 (.389) from beyond the arc.

The Pioneers outscored the Ospreys 30-18 off turnovers, as WP owned a 22-11 advantage in miscues. Stockton outscored William Paterson 31-16 in bench points in a physical game, one that saw three different Pioneers forced to leave the court due to injuries.

William Paterson will return to action Wednesday, Feb. 13, when the Pioneers host local rival Montclair State at 8:00 p.m. The Ospreys will play at Rutgers-Camden Feb. 13 at 8:00 p.m.