DALLAS, PA. – The William Paterson men's basketball team (2-0) secured a 75-63 victory against Penn State Hazleton (2-4) in the first round of Misericordia's McCarthy Tire Laurel Line Tournament Nov. 18.
 
The Pioneers will face the Misericordia/Clarks Summit first-round winner Saturday, Nov. 19, in the championship game at 4:00 p.m.
 
Senior forward David Mofunanya (Englewood, N.J./Dwight Morrow) was 7-for-9 (.778) for a team-best 18 points, while senior forward Richy Espinal (Ridgefield Park, N.J./Ridgefield Park) collected 15 tallies and a game-high 13 rebounds. Senior guard Zach Frick (Sparta, N.J./Sparta) scored half of his 12 points from the free-throw line.
 
WP turned a 12-8 deficit at the 14:07 mark into a 31-21 lead with 4:57 left in the first half behind five points from Mofunanya and seven from Espinal. The Pioneers carried a 38-33 advantage into the locker room after shooting 50.0 (14-28) percent from the floor.
 
A 17-4 run early in the second half stretched the lead to 57-43 with 10:33 remaining, and William Paterson kept it a double-digit margin until the final two minutes of the contest.
 
WP got more than half (39-75) of its points from off the bench, and turned 18 Nittany Lion turnovers into 22 points.
 
Junior guard Jacob Solano paced Penn State Hazleton with 20 points, and junior forward/center Jordan Singletary had 15 tallies and 11 rebounds.
 
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