Camden, NJ –The Montclair State University men's basketball team went on a 9-0 run to open the second half, erasing a three-point halftime deficit and powering the Red Hawks to a 77-69 victory over Rutgers University-Camden in a New Jersey Athletic Conference game here Saturday.

The Red Hawks improve to 12-7 overall and 7-4 in the NJAC. The Scarlet Raptors, who have lost 10 straight games, fall to 2-20 and 0-13.

After Rutgers-Camden took a 36-33 halftime lead, Montclair State came out on a 9-0 run, taking the lead for good on a jumper by junior forward QUENTIN DEMERITTE to make it a 37-36 game.

The Red Hawks stretched their lead to as many as 16 points (69-53) before the Scarlet Raptors cut the gap to single digits. Rutgers-Camden closed to within 74-67 with 46 seconds remaining on a foul shot by senior guard Tyrone Rucker before the Red Hawks closed out the scoring from the foul line.

Montclair State has won 25 of the last 26 games against Rutgers-Camden, including an 83-49 victory in Montclair Jan. 8. The Red Hawks lead the all-time series, 35-8.

Montclair State junior forward GIAN PAUL GONZALEZ collected a double-double with game-high totals of 23 points and 17 rebounds. He had 19 points and 12 rebounds in the second half. Senior forward MICHAEL GLUCK notched 21 points for the Red Hawks, while junior guard JAMAL FORD had 11 points and game-high totals of four assists and four steals. Teammate CLIFF SCHAFER, a sophomore forward, added 10 points. The Red Hawks out-rebounded the Scarlet Raptors, 42-33, and shot 49.0 percent (24-for-49) from the floor. They also went 21-for-29 (72.4 percent) from the foul line, led by an 8-for-10 performance by Ford.

Rutgers-Camden received 21 points and 11 rebounds from sophomore guard/forward Dane Nicholson. Rucker added 15 points and freshman guard Kenny Yu notched 12. Both teams return to NJAC action next week.

The Red Hawks host Rutgers-Newark Monday at 7 p.m., while the Scarlet Raptors play an 8 p.m. game at Richard Stockton College Wednesday.