Newark, NJ --- The Brooklyn College Men's Basketball team opened its 2012-2013 season with a loss in the opening round of the John K. Adams Tip-Off Classic, falling to host Rutgers-Newark, 74-58, at the Golden Dome Arena in Newark, NJ.

With the loss BC drops to 0-1 on the season, while Rutgers-Newark begins the year at 1-0.

Brooklyn was led by senior forward Kavon Baker, who tallied a team-high 17 points. Classmate forward Steven Grant added 11 points and six rebounds, while senior forward Filipp Bochkov was solid in the middle chipping in with six rebounds and six blocked shots. Making his first career start, sophomore guard Steven Diaz finished the night with eight points going 2-for-3 from beyond the arc. Senior forward Jeffrey Noel contributed with seven points coming off the bench, while sophomore guard Jerome Hayden had a solid line of seven points, five rebounds and four assists.

The Scarlet Raiders were paced by Al'Don Muhammad, who registered a game-high 21 points, to go along with nine rebounds and five assists. Christian Garcia added 13 points and six rebounds, while David Azoroh grabbed a game-best 10 rebounds.

The first half featured a tight ballgame with two ties and six lead changes as neither team was able to pull away. Following a pair free throws from Baker that tied the game at 17 all with 10:45 remaining in the half, Rutgers-Newark used a 6-0 run to take their largest lead of the game, 23-17, at the 4:41 mark of the period. The Bulldogs would cut their deficit to two on a couple of occasions; however, the Scarlet Raiders would take a five point lead, 30-25, into the halftime break.

Coming out of the intermission break it would be the host Rutgers-Newark who would put the game away. After a jumper from Diaz made it 39-32 in favor of the home team with 17:00 minutes left to play, the Scarlet Raiders used a 6-0 run to build their first double-digit lead of the game, 45-32, at the 12:35 mark. Rutgers-Newark would keep their advantage in double figures and eventually lead by as many as 23, as they would go on to cruise to the 74-58 victory.

For the game, BC shot 36.7% (18-49) from the field and 35.3% (6-17) from three. Rutgers-Newark shot 34.8% (23-66) from the field and 20.0% (1-5) from beyond the arc. The key to the game would come from the charity stripe, as the Scarlet Raiders went to the line 36 times, converting 27 attempts (75.0%). Brooklyn made the most of its free throw opportunities hitting 16-of-19 (84.2%).

Rutgers-Newark also controlled the glass, outrebounding Brooklyn 55-25, which led to a 15 second chance points for the home team. The Scarlet Raiders also scored 38 points in the paint, to go along with 25 points off of 22 BC turnovers.

The Bulldogs will be back in action tomorrow, Saturday, November 17th, as BC will take on Tufts University in the consolation game of the John K. Adams Tip-Off Classic. Tufts lost to Washington & Lee University, 79-68, in the first game of the day. The game is scheduled for 2:00 pm at the Golden Dome Arena on the campus of Rutgers-Newark in Newark, NJ.