DANBURY, CT- The William Paterson men's basketball team (7-4) took home the 2021 Hat City Tournament championship with its 82-68 road victory against New Paltz (5-4), on Dec. 30.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Both teams were trading shots for majority of the first half, until a made three pointer from junior guard Jadon Cepeda (West New York, N.J./Memorial) with seven seconds left in the half, gave the Pioneers' a 42-35 lead.
• WP jumped into the second half with a quick 15-2 run, gave them a 59-37 advantage at the 14:27 mark.
• The Pioneers' lead grew to as large as 24, when they held a 65-41 advantage with 10:21 left to play.
• The WP lead never fell to under 12 in the final 10 minuets. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Graduate student guard Brian Monaghan (Florham Park, N.J./Morristown-Beard) finished with 22 points and five rebounds.
• Cepeda scored 22 points and dished out four assists, while shooting 8-for-10 (80%) from the field.
• Junior forward Michael Gilmore (Teaneck, N.J./Pine Forge Academy) added 11 points and four rebounds.

UP NEXT:

• WP returns to conference play on the road at Rutgers-Camden on Wednesday, Jan. 5 at 5:00 p.m.

FOLLOW THE PIONEERS:

• www.wpupioneers.com/socialmedia