PENA SPARKS MONTCLAIR STATE OVER RUTGERS-NEWARK, 78-67

Montclair, NJ (1/9/08) – Junior forward Carlos Pena (Clifton, NJ / Clifton) came off the bench and posted 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists to spark Montclair State to a 78-67 win over Rutgers-Newark in a New Jersey Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball matchup at Panzer Gymnasium on Wednesday evening.

Freshman guards Tom Bonard (Westfield, NJ / Westfield) and James Williams (Englewood, NJ / Dwight Morrow) each scored 14 points as the Red Hawks moved back over the .500 mark at 7-6 with their first conference win in two tries (1-1). It was MSU’s third victory in its last four games and second straight over the Scarlet Raiders. MSU leads the all-time series, 57-23.

Sophomore forward Phil Barnes (Middlesex, NJ / Middlesex) had 12 points and eight rebounds for Rutgers-Newark, which dropped its second consecutive game following two straight wins. The Scarlet Raiders are also 7-6 overall and 0-2 in the NJAC.

A three-point halftime lead for Montclair State (36-33), Rutgers-Newark would regain the advantage 39-38 early in the second as Angel Collado (Jersey City, NJ / St. Peter’s Prep) scored on a short jumper. But Pena, who had 13 of his points over the final 20 minutes, answered with a jumper on the ensuing possession to give MSU a 40-39 lead it would not relinquish the rest of the way.

Pena’s jumper would spark a 17-4 run as he scored eight in the spurt, including a dunk with 12:57 to play to make the score 52-41. Sophomore Mike Hern (Hamburg, NJ / Wallkill Valley) capped the run with a three-pointer from the right corner as Montclair took its largest lead of the game at 55-43.

The Scarlet Raiders would not go away however, trimming the lead to 61-57 with 6:30 to play as David Cherry (Linden, NJ/ Roselle Catholic) scored on a layup. Williams then hit two free throws to boost the lead back to six and a pair of free throws by Jon Georges (West Orange, NJ / St. Peter’s Prep) with 3:56 to go made the score 69-60. Rutgers-Newark would only get as close as eight the rest of the way.

Georges and Ken Dudley (Willingboro, NJ / Burlington Tech) each had 10 points for the Red Hawks, who shot 56 percent (29-of-52) for the game. Junior Ryan Washington (Edison, NJ / JP Stevens) had five points, five rebounds and five blocked shots while Bonard handed out five assists.

Deshawn Singleton (Passaic, NJ / Passaic) added 11 points and four assists off the bench while Chadd Barnes (Middlesex, NJ / Middlesex) chipped in with 10 points and six rebounds. Cherry had nine points as the Scarlet Raiders shot 41 percent (28-of-68) from the floor and just 3-of-13 from behind the arc, including 0-for-6 in the second half.

Both teams return to NJAC action on Saturday, January 12. Montclair State travels to The College of New Jersey for a 3:00 pm start with the Lions while Rutgers-Newark is back home at the Golden Dome in Newark for a 7:30 tip versus Rowan University.