Box Score

NEWARK, N.J. – No. 24/24 William Paterson (19-3, 8-2 NJAC) wrapped up the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Women's Basketball North Division title, and with it a first-round bye for the upcoming league tournament, with a 66-41 victory at Rutgers-Newark (15-7, 5-6 NJAC) Feb. 5.

With three regular-season conference games still to play, the Pioneers locked up their fourth North Division championship in the last five years as they are 3.5 games ahead of Rutgers-Newark and 4.0 games ahead of Montclair State (4-6).

Junior guard BriAnna Lucas (Hamilton, N.J./Nottingham) scored 14 of her game-high 21 points during the first half, while classmate April Smith (Barnegat, N.J./Southern Regional) finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore forward Tatiana Javis (Newark, N.J./ Bloomfield Tech) also had a double-double with 12 tallies and 14 boards, adding three steals.

When Smith went to the bench with her third foul and William Paterson clinging to a slim 11-9 lead with 9:25 left in the opening period, the Pioneers went out to the perimeter where Lucas gunned in three of her five treys to key a decisive 14-6 run (25-15, 5:30). She also knocked down a jumper with just 16 ticks left before intermission, allowing WP to take a 31-22 lead into the break. A 16-2 run to open the second period (47-24, 11:31) put the game out of reach.

Senior forward Jaleesa Coleman was the only Scarlet Raider in double figures with 14 points, adding six rebounds and two blocked shots as Rutgers-Newark connected on just 23.1 (15-65) percent of its field goals. The Raiders made five of 37 (.135) shots from beyond the arc as they played catch-up for most of the night. Their 41 points matched their lowest output of the season.

Junior guard Brittany Smith notched seven points, a team-high seven rebounds and three assists for the Raiders.

The Pioneers will celebrate Take a Kid to the Game Day and National Girls and Women in Sports Day when they host New Jersey City Wednesday, Feb. 9, at 6:00 p.m.