Men's Basketball: Game Day Preview vs. NJCU

Montclair, NJ – The Montclair State men's basketball team hits the road to face New Jersey City University Saturday afternoon.

GAME INFO
Tipoff in Jersey City, NJ, is scheduled for 3 pm, with live stats and video available on montclairathletics.com.

LAST TIME OUT
Montclair State (7-5, 3-4 NJAC) picked up a come-from-behind victory over Rowan Wednesday. The Red Hawks battled back from five points down in the final four minutes. Trailing by a point late, IRVING CALLENDER IV drained two free throws with seven ticks left, and Rowan's shot at the buzzer went off target. Callender notched a double-double of 21 points and 11 rebounds, as guard DEVIN COOPER added 18 points.

TEAM LEADERS
Montclair State
Points Per Game: STEVEN BREEMAN, 17.3
Rebounds Per Game: IRVING CALLENDER IV, 9.0
Assists Per Game: DEVIN COOPER, 4.1
Field Goal Percentage: FRANCISCO PAULINO, .560
Three-Pointers Made: STEVEN BREEMAN, 28

New Jersey City
Points Per Game: Denzel Banks, 13.9
Rebounds Per Game: Ryan Savoy, 6.8
Assists Per Game: Jason Battle, 3.4
Field Goal Percentage: Kayton Darley, .505
Three-Pointers Made: Kayton Darley, 17

SCOUTING THE GOTHIC KNIGHTS
The Gothic Knights are 8-7 overall and 5-3 in the NJAC. The defending NJAC Champions are riding a two-game winning streak after topping Ramapo and Stockton. They beat Stockton 79-63 Wednesday and were paced by 21 points from Derryen White. NJCU has faced a pair of nationally-ranked teams, falling to Randolph-Macon 78-58 and Yeshiva 93-86.

LAST MEETING
NJCU notched an 87-69 victory over MSU on February 27, 2021. Trailing at the break, the Red Hawks battled back and took a 54-53 lead with 13:25 to go, thanks to a KEYON PRYCE three-pointer. The Gothic Knights would then outscore Montclair 34-19 over the final 13:10 to complete the home-and-home sweep. MYLES MITCHELL-WHITE had a team-high 14 points while MALACHI SMYTHE added 13.

SERIES HISTORY
Montclair State is 95-79 all-time against NJCU but has dropped the last three meetings. The Red Hawks' last win came on December 11, 2019, in Jersey City. In that game, MSU led by 10 with 5:07 to play, but the Gothic Knights got within a pair with 55 seconds to go. NJCU had two chances to send the game to overtime but could not convert.

UP NEXT
The Red Hawks return home on Wednesday to host Kean University at 8 pm.