WAYNE, N.J.- The William Paterson men's basketball team (4-1, 2-0 NJAC) secured an 81-70 home New Jersey Athletic Conference victory against New Jersey City (3-5, 0-2 NJAC) Dec. 1

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• WP held a 30-18 lead with seven minutes left in the first half.
• Two straight three-pointers from senior guard Nick Rodriguez (Redding, Calif./Shasta) extended the Pioneers lead to 21 points, 56-35 with 15:02 remaining.
• A late NJCU run cut the deficit to only five points, 70-65 at the 2:00 minute mark.
• Six points 1:10 span from graduate student guard Brian Monaghan (Florham Park, N.J./Morristown-Beard) gave the Pioneers' a 76-67 lead, eventually sealing the victory for WP.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Graduate student guard Domenic Mignone (Rutherford, N.J./Rutherford) finished with 21 points, nine rebounds and five assists, his fourth game this season scoring 20-plus points.
• Rodriguez made a career-high five three-pointers, ending with 17 points.
• WP shot an impressive 48% from both the field (27-56) and behind the arc (12-25).
• Junior forward Michael Gilmore (Teaneck, N.J./Pine Forge Academy) added eight rebounds.

UP NEXT:

• The Pioneers travel to play Rutgers-Newark on Saturday, December 4 at 8:00 p.m.

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• www.wpupioneers.com/socialmedia