Upper Montclair, NJ - Junior forward
DUQUAN EVERETT (Orange, NJ/Orange) scored 16 points and sophomore forward
GIAN PAUL GONZALEZ (No. Haledon, NJ/Manchester Regional) added 13 as seventh-ranked Montclair State defeated Lincoln University, 80-45, in the opening round of the MSU Tip-Off Tournament at Panzer Gymnasium on Friday evening.
KEITH DUNCAN (Rahway, NJ/East Side (Newark)) added nine points and six rebounds off the bench for the Red Hawks (1-0), who will face Buffalo State College in the championship game on Saturday, November 22 at 3:00 pm. Perry Davis (Buffalo, NY/Seneca) had a game-high 29 points and 10 rebounds for Buffalo State (1-0) as the Bengals knocked off Fisher (MA) College, 69-61. Fisher (0-1) will meet Lincoln in the consolation game at 1:00 pm.
Everett scored 13 in the first half as Montclair State went on an 11-2 run late in the period to build an 11-point lead at halftime. Trailing 14-13, Everett drained a three-pointer and then added two free throws as MSU took an 18-14 lead with 6:49 left. Duncan's added foul shot and after at basket by Lincoln's John Bunch (Randallstown, MD/Randallstown), Everett hit three straight free throws for a 22-16 advantage with 4:53 to go.
LAMONT NEWELL (Lodi, NJ/Dwight Murrow) sank a pair of free throws to cap the run as Montclair State to a 31-20 lead into intermission.
In the second half, MSU opened the period by scoring the first 13 points.
PIERRE MITCHELL (Newark, NJ/East Side) hit a pair of three-pointers that sandwiched around a Gonzalez basket and two field goals from Newell for a 44-20 lead with 16:38 remaining.
Andre Logan (Sahron Hill, PA/Academy Park) had 14 points and six rebounds for the Lions (0-1), who shot just 28 percent from the field (16-of-57), including 5-of-22 from beyond the arc. Alexis Perez (Bronx, NY/Harry S. Truman) had 10 points while 7-2 Bunch grabbed 13 rebounds and blocked six shots.
Mitchell and Newell each had eight points and combined for nine assists for Montclair, which outrebounded Lincoln, 50-45 and forced 30 turnovers by the Lions.Gonzalez had seven rebounds while Everett and Duncan each added six.
In the first game, Buffalo State led 36-29 at halftime and led by 10 with 16 minutes to play before going on a 16-2 run over the next five minutes to take a 60-36 lead. Davis ignited the run with a free throw and Joshua Becker (Hamburg, NY/Frontier) had seven points in the run.
Becker finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, five assists and six steals for the Bengals, who overcame a difficult evening at the free throw line (9-of-23).
Carmine Charles (New York, NY) had 24 points for Fisher, including six three-pointers. Kessen Green (Cambridge, MA) grabbed 19 rebounds for the Falcons, who outrebounded BSC, 47-34.
