Montclair, NJ – The Montclair State women's basketball team hosts New Jersey City University in the semifinals of the New Jersey Athletic Conference Tournament tomorrow evening.
Tickets for the game are $5 for general admission and $2 for students, children, and seniors. Due to NJAC regulations, all tickets must be purchased.
The No. 2 seed Red Hawks (20-5, 15-3 NJAC) and the No. 6 seed Gothic Knights (13-13, 9-9 NJAC) will tip-off at 7 pm inside the Panzer Athletic Center. In the other semifinal, top-seeded Rowan University (22-3, 16-2 NJAC) hosts No. 4 seed The College of New Jersey (16-10, 12-6 NJAC) in Glassboro, NJ at 7 pm. The two winners will meet Friday night at the site of the highest remaining seed in the championship game.
The winner of the NJAC Championship receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship, which begins next weekend.
The Red Hawks and Gothic Knights have met twice this season, with Montclair State winning both matchups. In the opener, junior TAYLOR BROWN produced a double-double of 15 points and 12 rebounds as Montclair earned a 57-49 victory. In the second meeting, the Red Hawks outscored NJCU 46-18 in the second half while KIM CALLOWAY came off the bench to score 18 points in an 87-40 win. The last Gothic Knight win came on February 13, 2002, when they notched a 71-54 victory.
Playing in the NJAC Tournament for the first time in 31 years, the Gothic Knights upset No. 3 seed Kean University 59-58 Saturday night. Junior Dayjah Anderson recorded a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds, while senior Aaliyah McCrae scored 13 points on 4-of-5 shooting from behind the arc. Kean had a chance for the win, but the Gothic Knights defended an inbound pass with 2.8 seconds to go and did not allow a shot to preserve the win.
Freshman NICKIE CARTER leads the Red Hawks with 16.9 points per game, with senior ALEX MCKINNON averaging 12.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per contest. Senior CERYS MACLELLAND and junior KAYLA BUSH have combined for 18.5 rebounds per game, with Bush adding 56 rejections. Brown has posted a pair of double-doubles on the year and filled stat-sheet against Rutgers University-Newark with 12 rebounds, nine points, six assists, and four blocks. Carter notched 10 games with 20 or more points, including a career-high 32 points in the regular season finale against Rutgers University-Camden last week.
Anderson paces the Gothic Knights with 11.1 points per game, while Hannah Johnson is second on the squad with 10.9 points per contest. Anderson and Ayanna Lewis are tied for the team lead with 7.0 boards per game while Johnson has dished out a team-best 33 assists. Lewis has recorded five double-doubles on the year, including a 28-point, 13-rebound performance against Kean earlier in the season.
The Red Hawks are 22-20 all-time in the NJAC Tournament, and have won six of the last seven NJAC Championships. You can follow along with live stats and live video on montclairathletics.com!
