Montclair, NJ- Now standing as the lone undefeated team in Division III, the #5 Montclair State University men's basketball team goes on the road on Wednesday when they travel for an NJAC rematch at William Paterson. 
 
GAME INFO
Tip-off from the Sports and Recreation Center in Wayne, NJ, is set for 7:30 p.m. Live coverage of the game can be found at monclairathletics.com.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Montclair claimed a victory over Rutgers-Newark on Saturday afternoon by a score of 85-61. The Red Hawks (18-0, 11-0 NJAC) raced out to an 11-2 advantage over the first four and a half minutes, shooting 4-of-5 with four different players hitting the stat sheet. After a KABRIEN GOSS three-point shot forced a Scarlet Raiders timeout, the visitors climbed back to within one possession a minute later with six-straight points. With just under 12 minutes on the clock, CRISTIAN NICHOLSON found a slicing MYLES PRIMAS for a dunk, with JACOB MORALES draining a jumper off a Rutgers-Newark turnover to reopen an eight-point advantage. The visitors accumulated 10 of the next 15 points to cut the difference to one possession, 22-19, with 8:27 left in the half. Both sides tightened up defensively, with neither allowing a basket for the next two minutes until Morales converted a layup off a feed from Goss. With the two sides trading baskets over the ensuing minutes, Nicholson drove to the bucket to increase the margin back to six. Rutgers-Newark countered with a 9-2 run over the next 90 seconds to take the lead multiple times, holding a slim 33-32 lead at the 2:35 mark of the frame. AHMAD ROBERTSON took command down the stretch, scoring four of Montclair's seven consecutive points to rebuild a multi-possession lead. A pair of baskets in the waning moments of the half by the Scarlet Raiders made the halftime score 39-37 in favor of the Red Hawks. Montclair jumpstarted a quick seven points out of the gate in the second half, including a driving layup and three-pointer from Goss, to go up by nine and force a Rutgers-Newark timeout. Following a layup from the Scarlet Raiders, Montclair rattled off another run, scoring the next 10 points over the ensuing five minutes, capped off by a dunk from Primas to make the score 56-39. Shortly after, the Red Hawks continued to build on their advantage, as MASON THEAR converted a pair of free throws to spark a 13-0 run to push the home side in front 69-41 with nine minutes remaining. A three-pointer from Morales at the 7:07 mark of the half led a 9-3 stretch for the Red Hawks, as a layup from ANDREW MARTIN increased the lead to 32 with just over five minutes remaining. The visitors countered with seven of the next nine points over the resulting two minutes, but Montclair nudged the lead back to 30 with 2:06 on the clock. Rutgers-Newark closed the afternoon with the final six points, but the Red Hawks held on for their 11th New Jersey Athletic Conference victory of the campaign.
 
TEAM LEADERS
MONTCLAIR STATE (18-0, 11-0 NJAC)
Points Per Game: JACOB MORALES, 18.8
Rebounds Per Game: JACOB MORALES, 6.7
Field goal percentage: KUNGA TSERING, .678
Three Point Percentage: Ryan Cassells, .476
Free throw Percentage: KABRIEN GOSS, .861
Assists: KABRIEN GOSS, 102
Steals: CRISTIAN NICHOLSON, 35
Blocks: MYLES PRIMAS, 18
 
WILLIAM PATERSON (6-12, 1-10 NJAC)
Points Per Game: Jack Gobel, 15.8
Rebounds Per Game: Fred Orock Jr., 5.4
Field Goal Percentage: Fred Orock Jr., .625
Three Point Percentage: Jack Gobel, .364
Free Throw Percentage: Jack Gobel, .794
Assists: Josiah Carey, 49
Steals: Jack Gobel, 29
Blocks: Three Tied for 14
 
SCOUTING WILLIAM PATERSON
The Pioneers enter this matchup with a 6-12 record on the year and are in ninth place in the NJAC with a 1-10 NJAC record after a tough matchup against Stockton on Saturday, in which they lost 77-56. In 2024-25, WPU posted a 6-19 overall record and a 2-16 record in the NJAC that saw them miss the conference tournament. According to the 2025-26 NJAC Preseason Poll, they are projected to place 10th this season. 
 
SERIES HISTORY
Montclair and William Paterson square off for the 191^st time in their intense rivalry. The Red Hawks are in complete control of the series at 113-77. They have won the last nine contests, including a win earlier this season. 
 
LAST MEETING
The Red Hawks and the Pioneers faced off last on December 3, 2025, where Montclair earned a commanding 102-75 victory. 
 
UP NEXT
Montclair State University continues its last stretch of NJAC games for the regular season and will travel to take on Rutgers-Camden on Saturday, January 31, at 1:00 p.m.