EWING, N.J. (Nov. 22, 2016) – The College of New Jersey men's basketball team scored the first seven points of the night and went on to defeat Rutgers University-Camden, 106-66, in the New Jersey Athletic Conference opener for both teams here Tuesday night.
TCNJ improves to 3-1 overall and 1-0 in the conference with its fourth straight win and sixth victory in its last seven games against Rutgers-Camden. The Lions, who lead the all-time series, 62-18, produced the most points the Raptors have allowed since a 116-82 loss to Roanoke College on Nov. 15, 2015.
Rutgers-Camden falls to 0-2 overall and 0-1 in the NJAC.
After TCNJ scored seven points to start the game, the closest the Scarlet Raptors came after that was a six-point deficit, at both 15-9 and 18-12. Leading, 34-22, the Lions scored seven straight points to break the game open at 41-22, on their way to a 44-26 halftime lead.
TCNJ received 11 first-half points from senior forward Bobby Brackett (Lawrenceville, NJ/Lawrence) and 10 points from junior guard Eric Murdock Jr. (Bridgewater, NJ/Bridgewater) in the opening half.
Rutgers-Camden had eight first-half points from sophomore guard Elijah Robles (Clifton, NJ/Clifton) and six from sophomore forward Isaac Destin (Woodlynne, NJ/Collingswood).
A 13-point run early in the second half padded the Lions' lead to 57-28 and TCNJ went on to place 12 players in the scoring column, including six in double figures. Sophomore forward Jordan Glover (Lawrenceville, NJ/Lawrence) paced the winners with 17 points, while Brackett netted 15. Senior forward Corey Stanford (Pittsburgh, PA/Penn Trafford) had a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Murdock added 13 points and nearly had his own double-double, finishing with a game-high nine assists.
The Lions shot 36-for-73 (49.3 percent) from the floor, including 18-for-39 (46.2) from three-point range. They also held a commanding 53-30 advantage off the boards.
Destin finished with 16 points for the Scarlet Raptors, while Robles added 14 and senior guard Julian Martin (Williamstown, NJ/Williamstown) netted 11. Martin added team-high totals of seven rebounds and three assists.
Rutgers-Camden returns to action Nov. 30 when it hosts NJAC rival Rowan University at 8 p.m. in its home opener.