Montclair, NJ – The Red Hawks men's basketball team returned home to the Panzer Athletic Center for the second time in 2021 and came away with a 76-61 victory over the visiting Cougars of Kean University.
 
With the win, Montclair State (3-1, 3-1 NJAC) splits this weekend's set with Kean (1-3, 1-3 NJAC). In the win, the Red Hawks avenge last night's 90-85 defeat to the Cougars in Union, which snaps a two game losing streak to the Cougars.
 
The Red Hawks were led in scoring by a pair of upperclassmen, senior IRVING CALLENDER IV, and junior MYLES MITCHELL-WHITE, who led the way with 19 points. Callender was effective on both ends of the court, as he secured a double-double with ten rebounds. Mitchell-Whites game-high total in points came off the bench. The Red Hawks had two additional players reach scoring in double-digits, as juniors STEVEN BREEMAN and DEVIN COOPER added 17 and 10 points, respectively. Breeman joined Callender as the two Red Hawks finished the contest with a double-double. The junior was active all afternoon, as he tallied seven assists. The Red Hawks bested Kean from beyond-the-arc, by a margin of 11-2. MSU was led from downtown by Mitchell-White and Callender, who totaled three and four three-pointers. The Red Hawks also received solid play off the bench from freshman AMIR WILLIAMS, who added seven rebounds and two blocks to the cause.
 
Early in the contest, the Cougars got off on the right foot as they busted out of the gates to take an 18-9 lead. Following a time out taken by MSU, it was all Red Hawks, as they quickly jumped to a 23-18 lead due to a 14-0 run. The serge was kick-started off a made jumper from Cooper. The Red Hawks would then knock down consecutive three-point attempts, as Mitchell-White and Irving Callender were successful on their attempts. The two combined for eight of the Red Hawks 14 points during the stretch, as Callender added five, to go along with three from the hands of Mitchell-White. From that point on, the Red Hawks would not look back as they headed into the halftime break with a 35-29 lead.
 
It was much of the same in the second half, as Callender knocked down a three-pointer at 18:26 for the first score of the half. The MSU performance in the half was highlighted by a run from 11:47 to 6:10 when the Red Hawks outscored Kean 17-8. The lead would grow as high as 21 at 66-45, but Kean did not go away. A 14-5 spurt by the Cougars brought the score down to 12, but a Mitchell-White layup and triple by DEVIN COOPER closed out scoring for MSU.
 
The Cougars were led in the scoring column by Jalien Jamison and Nate Lyles, who added 14 points apiece. The Red Hawks held an edge in rebounds, finishing with a 43-27 advantage.
 
Montclair State returns to the court in six days, as they host  the Scarlet Raiders of Rutgers-Newark for a 5:00 pm tipoff.