WAYNE, N.J. – Five Pioneers were in double figures in scoring as the William Paterson men's basketball team (6-2, 3-1 NJAC) blew past visiting Rowan (5-4, 2-3 NJAC), 103-63, Dec. 11.
The Pioneers came out hot, scoring on their first three possessions as they built a 20-9 advantage by the 12:57 mark. WP led by as many as 27 (53-26, 2:03) during the game's first 20 minutes and owned a 55-33 halftime advantage as the Pioneers shot it better from three-point range (9-16, .563) than from inside the arc (10-23, .435) and doubled up the Profs on the glass, 30-15. Junior guard Sandy Burgos (Fort Lee, N.J./Fort Lee) and sophomore guard Bright Mensah (Hackensack, N.J./Hackensack) each collected 13 first-half points for WP, and senior guard Javae King-Gilchrist (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) had 12 tallies.
That 20-point lead became 30 three minutes into the second half (68-37, 16:57), and reached 40 (97-57) with 3:28 remaining despite the WP bench playing the majority of minutes down the stretch.
Burgos led all scorers with 24 points, adding seven rebounds and four assists, Mensah had 22 tallies, and King-Gilchrist collected 19 points and game bests of seven assists and seven steals. Junior guard Jaques Conceicao (Massama-Lisboa, Portugal/Francais Charle Lepierre) posted a double-double with 12 tallies and a game-high 10 rebounds, while freshman guard Zach Frick (Sparta, N.J./Sparta) scored a season-best 10 points in 10 minutes off the bench.
WP shot 52.8 (38-72) percent from the field overall, including a 14-for-27 (.519) effort from three-point distance, and finished with a 49-34 rebounding edge. The 103 points were the most for William Paterson during a regulation game since a 103-45 home victory against Rutgers-Camden nearly nine years ago (2/19/05).
Senior guard Rich McNamara led Rowan with 14 points and seven rebounds, and classmate Tim McDaniels posted 13 tallies.
William Paterson will play at Montclair State Saturday, Dec. 14, at 1:00 p.m.
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