August, who scored 16 of his points in the second half and made 9-of-12 shots from the field in the game, topped five MSU players in double figures as Montclair State improved its record to 13-3 on the season and 3-1 in the NJAC.

Kean (2-12 overall, 1-3 NJAC), which dropped its ninth consecutive contest, led for the most of the opening seven minutes of the first half. The Cougars held their biggest lead at 10-5 with 13:31 to play.

Montclair State, which made 10 3-pointers in the game, hit on seven of those in the first half. The Red Hawks scored 10 unanswered points to go ahead 15-10 with 10:38 left in the opening period. MSU never looked back as it increased its margin to a 13-point bulge at 36-23 at halftime.

In the second half, Kean closed the deficit to nine points four times, the last at 47-38 with 12:06 remaining. Sophomore guard Michael Burton (Irvington, N.J./South Plainfield) scored 10 of his team-high 19 points and junior guard Mike Shaughnessy (Linwood, N.J./Mainland Regiional) added nine of his 12 points in the second stanza in trying to keep the Cougars close.

MSU led by as many as 21 points at 75-54 with 1:34 left. Freshman guards Dwight Bostic (Roselle, N.J./Abraham Clark), who scored all his points on 4-of-5 three-point tries, and Aaron Williams (West Orange, N.J./Jonathan Dayton) scored 12 and 11 points, respectively, in reserve roles. Sophomore forward Ordel Goldson (Hackettstown, N.J./Warren Hills) and junior guard Ken Rubenstein (South Orange, N.J./Columbia) chipped in 10 points apiece for the Red Hawks.

Montclair State plays at New Jersey City University on Wednesday evening while Kean host Moravian College on Monday night. For the Red Hawks it will be a rematch of last season's NJAC Championship Game won by NJCU.