Box Score

Montclair St. MSU 12-3,6-2 NJAC

TCNJ TCNJ 11-4,7-1 NJAC

Montclair St. MSU

12-3,6-2 NJAC

Final

Jan. 15, 2025

TCNJ TCNJ

11-4,7-1 NJAC

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	3	4	F
Montclair St. MSU	13	12	25	12	62
TCNJ TCNJ	17	17	17	10	61

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | 1/15/2025 7:27:00 PM

Second Half Rally Helps Women’s Basketball Stun TCNJ, 62-61

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Ewing, NJ- Facing a nine-point deficit at the half, the Montclair State University Women's Basketball team (12-3, 6-2 NJAC) rallied back in the second half to hand The College of New Jersey (11-4, 7-1 NJAC) their first conference loss off the season as they stunned the Lions, 62-61 on Wednesday night.

HOW IT HAPPENED

It was a back-and-forth opening quarter with both teams exchanging buckets early. The game saw four lead changes and two tied scores up to an 11-8 lead for Montclair at the 4:04 timestamp. OLIVIA VERO was the sparkplug in the first quarter with seven points. The Lions, however, clawed back with a 9-2 run to end the first quarter and held a 17-13 lead heading into the second.
TCNJ controlled the beginning portion of the second quarter with nine unanswered points in the first five minutes of the quarter to take a comfortable, 27-13 edge. The Red Hawks did not fold though with a three-pointer from ISABELLA ORLANDO igniting a 10-2 run that cut the lead to 29-23 with just under two minutes remaining in the half. BRIANNA MONTAJES found a layup late and TCNJ closed out the quarter with a layup and a near buzzer-beater three with just three seconds remaining to take a 34-25 lead into halftime.
The Lions tried to put away the Red Hawks in the third quarter, but they continued to fight back and climb back from the deficit. TCNJ held the largest lead of the game in third with a 14-point advantage at the 3:28 mark. A jumper from Orlando, a three from ALEXIS STROLLO, and a layup from Montajes brought the game to within six with just 1:10 left in the quarter. The momentum of the game swung in Montclair's favor after a TCNJ layup with 57 seconds left was followed by an ALYSSA CRAIGWELL jumper. After Craigwell's jumper, The Red Hawk's press came bearing down and Vero generated two steals on their side of the court that led to creating her own layup and a kick out to SHANNON HUGHES for three and the TCNJ lead was by just one point heading into the final quarter, 51-50.
Vero scored the first bucket of the quarter to give Montclair their first lead since the first quarter. She followed up with another lay-in and a three-pointer from Strollo pushed the Red Hawks out to a 57-51 edge. The College of New Jersey fought back with eight unanswered points to recapture the lead with 3:50 remaining in the game, but another Vero layup nodded the game up 59-59 heading into the final two minutes. After Craigwell was fouled and converted one of two free throws to take the lead, the Lions secured a go-ahead bucket with 35 seconds remaining. The ball was put in the hands of Craigwell with just a possession worth of time remaining in the game and she delivered with a driving layup to give Montclair a 62-61 lead with just 21 seconds remaining. TCNJ had one shot left and it was SOPHIE BENEVENTINE who denied the Lion's Grace Kowalski with a buzzer-beater, blocking the game-winner to complete Montclair's upset in Ewing.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

Montclair continues to be off to their hottest start since the 2017-18 season where the Red Hawks were 15-1 in the same span of games.
The Red Hawks saw three individuals score in the double-figures, including Vero who led the way with 19 points on 9-for-14 shooting. She also collected seven rebounds, two assists, three steals, and three blocks in the contest.
Beneventine played a crucial role in the win for the Red Hawks, leading the team with 10 rebounds, including the offensive rebound off the missed and-one free throw by Craigwell with 22 seconds remaining that helped shave 10 seconds off the clock and left TCNJ with just eight seconds left to generate a game-winner.
Montclair took advantage of their opportunities inside, scoring 38 points in the paint.

FROM THE COURT

"We challenged them [our players] to give a little bit more. We felt like we were playing it safe. We stepped up and made plays in the second half and were more aggressive on the boards. Our upperclassman really stepped up and provided great leadership down the stretch." Head Coach Karin Harvey.

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