UNION, N.J. – The William Paterson men's basketball team (13-2, 5-1 NJAC) scored 14 late unanswered points for a 67-56 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) victory Jan. 14 at Kean (3-14, 2-4 NJAC).  With the win, the Pioneers remained in first place by a full game in the tightly-contested NJAC North Division standings.

Junior guard Corey Chandler (Newark, N.J./Newark East Side) poured in a game-best 26 points, making nine of 15 (.600) attempts overall and four of 10 (.400) from three-point range.  He added four assists and four steals.  Junior Lance Brown (Teaneck, N.J./Paterson Catholic) notched his seventh double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, and classmate Rick DeStefano (Marlboro, N.J./Marlboro) was 4-for-6 (.667) from beyond the arc for 14 points.

Trailing 48-47 with 6:56 to play, DeStefano drained a trey to ignite a 14-0 Pioneer run during the next four and a half minutes, giving WP a commanding 61-48 advantage with 1:15 remaining.  During the scoreless drought, Kean missed three shots and turned the ball over three times.

In a back-and-forth first half, neither team led by more than three points, as the opening 20 minutes featured eight ties and 12 lead changes.  The Pioneers scored six straight points to erase a three-point deficit and take a three-point lead at 21-18 with 7:12 remaining, but the Cougars scored five unanswered points late in the half to build a 29-26 advantage with 1:37 to go.

DeStefano tied the game with a three-pointer (29-29, 1:19), and a dunk by Chandler gave the Pioneers a two-point lead with just under a minute left, but Michael Burton knocked down a three-pointer with 28 seconds remaining to hand Kean a 32-31 edge at the break.

Burton scored 16 points to lead the Cougars, and Ryan Duffy had 13.

William Paterson will host Baruch Monday, Jan. 16, at 7:00 p.m.