New Jersey City University Athletics

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LOUDONVILLE, NY (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | New Jersey City University was within striking distance of Division I mid-major Siena College at halftime before the Saints used a 10-0 run in the first two minutes of the second half to claim an 88-56 victory over the Gothic Knights in a highly-anticipated men's basketball exhibition game on November 2 at the Alumni Rec Center.
 
Playing in front of its biggest crowd in nearly seven years (1,069 total), NJCU only committed 10 turnovers in the contest but couldn't match Siena's accuracy, particularly in the second half when the Saints shot a sizzling 69.2 percent (18-of-26) and the  Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) perennial power finished the game making 58.8 percent from the floor (30-51).
 
In a homecoming for seventh-year head coach Marc Brown, a 1991 Siena graduate and that program's all-time leading scorer and greatest player, the reigning New Jersey Athletic Conference Coach of the Year received a warm welcome from the home crowd in his first appearance on the floor at the ARC during a collegiate game in more than 20 years.
 
Siena shot just 4-of-14 from long range but dominated the lane where it outscored NJCU, 38-16. While the Saints didn't have a drastic size advantage over their Division III counterparts, the experience was evident as Siena out-rebounded NJCU, 46-32, including 42-21 on the defensive glass. Siena shot 26-of-37 (.703) from two-point distance.
 
"The atmosphere was great and it felt good to be back; I just wish we performed better," Brown noted. "The reaction [to his return] was good and I saw many old faces at the game. The support at Siena is great."
 
"But you saw the difference in talent. They showed us why they are Division I and we are Division III. They were much more physical and have more polished players. Hopefully this will inspire our guys to work harder in practice, leading up to our season opener [November 16]. We were completely dominated on both ends of the floor and a game like this proves how much we need to improve to get where we want to be competitively this season."
 
In his first game back on the floor after missing the entire 2012-13 season with an injury, senior All-NJAC returner WALIK ALBRIGHT (Jersey City, NJ/Create Charter) was NJCU's top performer with a double-double of 11 points (4-12 FG), a game-high 10 rebounds (eight defensive) and three assists.
 
Newcomer and junior point guard JOURDAN ROBERSON (Brooklyn, NY/University (Newark)) scored eight points, knocking down both three-pointers and free throws he attempts, shooting 2-of-3 from the field in 17 minutes. Junior shooting guard DAVID COLE (Avenel, NJ/Colonia) added eight points, shooting 2-of-4 from three-point range. In a promising sign, NJCU shot 58.3 percent from three-point distance in the game, making 7-of-12 attempts.
 
Siena juniors Rob Poole (Cherry Hill, NJ/Paul VI) and Evan Hymes paced the Saints with 16 points each. Poole shot 5-of-7 from the field and 5-of-6 from the line, adding eight defensive rebounds. Hymes was 5-of-12 and also made 5-of-6 from the line with four rebounds, three assists and three steals. Javion Ogunyemi finished with nine points, making all three shots he took (3-6 FG) while adding five boards and four blocks. Marquis Wright tallied eight points (3-5 FG) and eight assists and just one turnover. Siena had 22 combined assists on its 30 baskets and committed just 11 turnovers.
 
With the game tied at 2-2, Siena jumped out to a 14-3 lead on a 12-1 run, but NJCU rallied to cut the lead to 25-20 with 4:36 to play in the half. The Saints pushed the lead to 40-30 at the break, and scored the first 10 points after intermission to take command before leading by as many as 37 in the latter stages of the contest. Siena outscored NJCU in the second half, 48-26.