Montclair, NJ- After a dramatic triumph this past Saturday, the #8 Montclair State University men's basketball team looks to remain undefeated as it hosts The College of New Jersey on Wednesday night.
 
GAME INFO
Tip-off from the Panzer Athletic Center is stamped for 7:00 p.m. Live coverage of the game can be found at monclairstateathletics.com.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Montclair completed a triumphant comeback in the final seconds of the game to best Stockton, 94-92, on Saturday. The Red Hawks (14-0, 7-0 NJAC) fell behind 8-5 after the first two minutes of the contest, but equalized shortly after on a three-point shot from CRISTIAN NICHOLSON. The two sides traded buckets the next four trips up the court before Stockton reopened their lead at 19-12 with 13 minutes remaining in the half. A minute later, AHMAD ROBERTSON connected on a long-distance attempt, and CHRISTIAN CEVIS converted an and-one opportunity to cut the margin to three at 23-20. Montclair continued to push, with Cevis draining a three to level the game and KABRIEN GOSS notching a layup to give the Red Hawks the lead at the midway point of the period. Stockton collected the game's next five points over the next 90 seconds to nudge back in front 28-25 before the Red Hawks countered with a 6-2 run of their own, capped off by a three from KUNGA TSERING to push the home side in front by one at the 6:51 mark. The Ospreys built a 12-2 stretch over the next three minutes to go up by nine, 44-35, with three minutes in the half. Trailing by eight a minute later, a driving layup from MYLES PRIMAS brought Montclair within two possessions, and JACOB MORALES knocked down a shot from beyond the arc to make it a three-point contest. Stockton used a layup in the waning moments of the stanza to make the halftime score 47-42. An 8-2 run coming out of the break pushed the visitors ahead by double-digits at 11 after the opening 120 seconds. The Red Hawks answered with seven consecutive points to cut the deficit back to two possessions, but an extended 14-5 stretch by Stockton over the next three and a half minutes pushed the score to 69-56 with 12:29 on the clock. Down by 10 a few minutes later, Nicholson drove to the basket to trim the deficit to single digits. On the next possession, Robertson found Morales for a three-pointer to cut the game to 77-72. With Stockton holding an 86-78 lead with 3:12 left, Morales connected on another three-pointer to begin the final push for the Red Hawks. Down by six, Robertson converted a layup with 1:14 on the clock, and a dunk from Primas coming out of a timeout made it a 90-88 game with just under a minute remaining. After Stockton hit a pair of free throws with 15 seconds left, the Red Hawks called a timeout and would climb to within one on a shot from beyond the arc from Morales. On the ensuing possession, Montclair forced a turnover on the in-bounds pass, leading to a three-pointer from Goss in front of the home bench to vault Montclair ahead by two, a lead they did not relinquish on the game's final trip up the court.
 
TEAM LEADERS
MONTCLAIR STATE (14-0, 7-0 NJAC)
Points Per Game: JACOB MORALES, 20.4
Rebounds Per Game: JACOB MORALES, 6.6
Field goal percentage: KUNGA TSERING, .763
Three Point Percentage: Ryan Cassells, .438
Free throw Percentage: KABRIEN GOSS, .889
Assists: KABRIEN GOSS, 83
Steals: CRISTIAN NICHOLSON, 27
Blocks: MYLES PRIMAS, 15
 
TCNJ (10-4, 5-2 NJAC)
Points Per Game: Nick Koch, 19.5
Rebounds Per Game: Matthew Solomon, 10.1
Field goal percentage: Khalid Bakare, .556
Three Point Percentage: Mason Mangione, .393
Free throw Percentage: Jonathan Okocha, .804
Assists: Nick Koch, 62
Steals: David Alexandre, 24
Blocks: Jordan Robinson, 6
 
SCOUTING TCNJ
The Lions enter this matchup with a 10-4 overall record and a 5-2 NJAC record after defeating Rutgers-Newark 87-59 on Saturday. Last season, TCNJ compiled a 20-8 record and a 12-6 mark in the NJAC. They entered the conference tournament as the fifth seed, where they edged Kean, 90-87, before falling to Montclair, 80-62, in the semifinals. TCNJ earned itself an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, but suffered a 98-96 defeat at the hands of Pitt-Bradford in the first round. According to the 2025-26 NJAC Preseason poll, the Lions are slated to be the runners-up to Montclair in the conference this season.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Montclair and TCNJ face off for the 179^th time in their long-standing NJAC rivalry. The Red Hawks are ahead of the series 104-74 and have won the past eight contests against the Lions.
 
LAST MEETING
These two programs met last in the NJAC semifinals on February 25, 2025. Montclair earned an 80-62 win in the contest.
 
UP NEXT
 
Montclair State University is set for a big conference matchup with RV TCNJ on Wednesday, January 14. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m.