UNION, N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | February 22, 2020 is the 40th anniversary of the Miracle on Ice. It also will be remembered as the day the New Jersey City University women's basketball team pulled off a miracle of its own. Playing in its first New Jersey Athletic Conference Tournament game in 31 years and trailing by 15 in the first half, the No. 6 seeded Gothic Knights pulled off a comeback for the ages, taking a one-point lead with 1:17 to play and playing stellar defense in the final minute to shock No. 3 Kean University, 59-58, in the NJAC Quarterfinals at Harwood Arena. NJCU won its first NJAC Tournament game in the history of the program.
NJCU (13-13, 9-9 NJAC), two years removed from being 0-18 in the conference for the third year in a row, is moving on to the NJAC Semifinals on Tuesday, February 25 and will face No. 2 seeded and long-time conference powerhouse Montclair State University in Montclair, N.J. The Gothic Knights were making their first appearance in the NJAC Tournament since the 1988-89 season. NJCU won its fourth consecutive game and improved to 7-3 on the road in conference regular season and playoff action this year. Kean's season likely will end at (17-9, 13-5 NJAC).
Senior shooting guard Hannah Johnson drilled a three from the right wing to make it a one-point game (58-57) with 2:01 to go and junior power forward Ayanna Lewis tied the game and gave NJCU a one-point, 59-58 margin with 1:17 remaining that held up.
The Knights forced a turnover on Kean's next possession—one of 29 Cougar giveaways in the game and 18 in the second half—and when Kean got the ball back with 7.7 seconds left, never let the Cougars get a shot off, forcing a game-ending turnover.
Second-year head coach Pat Devaney, Sr. said "Winning this game shows we have arrived. Preseason ranked 10th in the NJAC and we are here. This goes to show you that with hard work, anything is possible."
"I am still on cloud nine. This is huge for my university and Jersey City," said Devaney. "Offense wins games, defense wins championships and our girls were hungry for this one. They followed the game plan and executed it perfectly. Kean is a tough team to beat at home. They have two great players in Shannon [McCoy] and Payce [Lange]. It was a huge task that our girls were up to."
The Knights played strategic basketball. NJCU had fouls to give and with 2.8 seconds to go, fouled the Cougars, forcing them to inbound again. They never could get off a shot attempt.
"We wanted to contain and switch everything," Devaney said. "We knew we had fouls to give. The girls had active hands and put the clamps down."
Junior wing Dayjah Anderson produced her third double-double of the season with a game-high 18 points and 10 rebounds while senior point guard Aaliyah McCrae shot the lights out, knocking down 3-of-4 three-point shots and 5-of-6 overall from the field, to finish with 13 points.
Rookie small forward Sarah Edmond grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds while playing a full 40 minutes. Johnson tallied eight points (2-6 FG), hitting both three point shots she attempted (2-2) and had five steals. Lewis added eight points (3-7 FG) and three steals.
Graduate student forward Cindy Foresta (Monroe Township, N.J.) finished with 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting to lead Kean and grabbed 10 boards with four assists but committed seven turnovers. Senior guard Payce Lange (Tewksbury, N.J.) scored 10 of the first 15 points for Kean but was largely held in check from there, scoring 16 points (7-13 FG) with seven rebounds, but also had five turnovers. Sophomore guard Shannon McCoy (Barnegat, N.J.) finished with 15 points and four assists in a full 40 minutes. Only three other players scored for Kean and combined for 10 total points.
NJCU won despite shooting just 34.4 percent for the game and 24.1 percent shooting in the opening half while the Cougars shot 45.8 percent overall and 63.6 percent in the fourth quarter (7-11). NJCU held a decisive 23-9 advantage in points off Kean's turnovers.
Kean, which twice edged NJCU in the regular season by a combined six points, could not defeat the Knights for the third time this season despite leading by 13 (31-18) at halftime. NJCU outscored Kean 22-11 in the third quarter.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Kean jumped out to an 11-7 lead in the first eight minutes of the opening quarter thanks to seven NJCU turnovers as NJCU was held without a field goal for the final 5:31 of the period. Kean held a modest 11-8 edge after 10 minutes.
- A three by sophomore forward Zyearah Taylor-Gaston ended the field goal drought at 6:26 in the opening minute of the second quarter but Lange answered with a layup as she scored 10 of the first 15 for Kean. McCoy hit a triple with 8:01 to go to extend the Cougar lead to 18-11. Johnson buried a three with 5:36 left in the half to cut it to 18-14 and the teams traded the next two baskets with Anderson scoring to make it 20-16.
- The Cougars worked the lead to 26-16 as Foresta scored a layup with 3:04 to go, McCoy hit a jumper (2:24) and Lange scored her 12th point on a third chance opportunity after a pair of Kean offensive rebounds. A jumper in the lane by Lange in the final minute extended the margin to 28-16. Foresta buried a three from the left arc with 13 seconds left in the half to give Kean its largest lead—a 15-point, 31-16 advantage—before junior guard Mya Neal scored inside to close the half down, 31-18.
- The Cougars shot 50 percent in the 2nd quarter. Lange (14) and Foresta (11) combined for 25 of the 31 first-half points for Kean.
- NJCU outscored Kean 11-2 to open the third quarter and drew within four, 33-29, after McCrae hit a three with 6:12 left and freshman guard Samantha DiPopolo sank a jumper with 5:03 to go. A jumper by Anderson, moments after she drew an offensive foul, made it 35-31. Johnson sank two from the line with 3:26 left to draw within four points for the third time in the quarter, then forced back-to-back traveling violations. Anderson knocked down a long jumper with 2:31 left in the quarter to cut it to 37-35.
- Moments later Johnson picked up her fourth foul of the game. Kean hit two foul shots before Lewis answered with a jumper (39-37). Kean junior guard Casey Filiault (Ocean Township, N.J.) hit a three with 24 seconds left in the quarter before McCrae's responded with a three from the right arc with under five seconds to go and NJCU was within two, 42-40. NJCU forced nine Cougar turnovers in the quarter and only coughed it up twice.
- Kean opened the fourth with a triple from the left corner by sophomore guard Sarah Olivero (Roxbury, N.J.). Lange picked up her fourth foul with 8:10 remaining and the Cougars up 45-40. Olivero hit another long two, a fall away shot from the right arc, to push the lead to 47-40. McCrae, left unmarked, buried a 25-foot three from the right wing to cut the deficit to 47-43 and Kean turned it over on the next possession. Neal fouled out for NJCU with 6:38 left.
- McCoy scored on a fast break on the ensuing inbounds (49-43) before Anderson hit a foul shot and Lewis forced Kean's 24th turnover and Anderson sank two foul shots after being fouled on a drive to the basket with 6:04 to go (49-46). McCoy was called for an offensive foul on the next possession.
- McCrae hit a spinning runner off the window and NJCU was within one, 49-48. McCoy sank a three (52-48) with 5:22 to play and junior guard Emily Dominguez (Brick, N.J.) scored her first basket of the game, left wide open under the basket, to increase the lead to 54-48. Anderson and McCoy traded baskets (56-50) before McCrae hit another runner off the glass (56-52). After Kean missed a wide-open layup, NJCU called timeout, down four, with 2:50 to go.
- Lewis' layup with 2:35 left was answered by a Lange jumper before Johnson drilled a three from the right wing to make it a one-point game (58-57) with 2:01 to go. When Lange badly missed her next jumper, Anderson grabbed the board and Lewis was fouled. She sank a game-tying foul shot with 1:17 to go, then the go-ahead shot and NJCU led 59-58.
- Kean turned it over on the next possession and NJCU got it back, calling timeout with 49.6 seconds left. After the Knights missed a jumper, Lange got the rebound but Johnson swiped it from her and NJCU called timeout with 29.3 to go.
- NJCU could not score, and committed a shot clock violation. Kean inbounded the ball from halfcourt, down one, with 7.7 to go. NJCU had a foul to give and fouled with 2.8 to go. Kean called another timeout before turning over the final inbounds pass.
NOTABLES:
- Series: 71st meeting. Kean leads, 58-13. NJCU snapped a 12 game losing streak to the Cougars, winning for the first time since February 1, 2014 in Jersey City (72-49). It was NJCU's first win in Union since a 64-53 victory on January 26, 2013.
- NJCU evens its all-time record in the NJAC Tournament to 1-1. Its only other game was also against Kean in Union, N.J. on February 23, 1989. Kean won that meeting, 100-78, en route to its seventh consecutive conference championship; it would win nine in a row between 1982-83 and 1990-91.
- Sarah Edmond reached double figures in rebounding for the 10th time this year.
- Aaliyah McCrae scored in double figures for the fourth time this year and the third game in a row.
- Dayjah Anderson scored in double figures for the 15th time in 23 games.
- NJCU's 13 wins are the most since going 14-13 while playing as an independent [non-NJAC] in 2004-05. Its 12 wins are the most in a season as a member of the NJAC since going 18-9 in the 1988-89 season—the only other time it made the NJAC Tournament.
UP NEXT:
- NJCU has never beaten Montclair State on the road. That's what will be at stake when the sixth-seeded Knights visit No. 2 seeded Montclair on Tuesday, February 25 at 7 p.m.
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