Mahwah, NJ: A 19-point deficit did not faze the #1 seeded Ramapo College men's basketball team as they battled from behind to defeat the #4 seeded Red Hawks of Montclair State, 80-76 in a hard fought NJAC semi-final match-up at the Bradley Arena. Behind 24 points from Patrick Peterson, the Roadrunners advance to play the #6 seeded Pioneers of William Paterson University on Saturday, February 24th for the New Jersey Athletic Conference Championship Crown.

Peterson finished the night shooting 8-17 and 2-5 from behind the three-point arc as he collected 24 points in the win. Christopher Moseley netted 19 points and Josh Ford collected 16, while Thomas Bonacum put away 13 points of his own. The team shot a combined 27-65 (42%) from the field. Bonacum led with eight rebounds and Peterson dished out four assists while Peterson and Ford each shot 6-8 from the charity stripe.

MSU jumped out to a 6-0 lead on two three-pointers from Daniel Ramis before a 14-6 lead (14:52) came on another long shot from Ramis which forced a Ramapo time out. Ramis would nail down another three to go up, 24-16 with 9:12 on the clock, but Moseley would answer with a three and Peterson would lay in a two-point goal to come within three, 21-24 forcing the Red Hawks to talk it over. Out of the timeout Ramapo forced a turnover and at the other end of the court an intentional foul put Peterson on the line. Nailing down two free throws put Ramapo within one, 23-24 with 8:00 flat to go in the half. Less than four minutes later Ramis scored his 21st point of the game to put the Red Hawks on top, 33-25. A free throw from Jordan Roberson capped an 8-0 run for MSU putting the Red Hawks ahead 34-25 with 3:20 to go. Down the stretch the Roadrunners chipped away with a mini 4-0 run, but a final basket from Myles Mitchell-White would put MSU ahead 36-29 heading into the locker room. Ramis lead all scorers with 21 points in the half as he shot 7-10 from behind the three-point arc. MSU went 12-31 (39%) from the field. Mitchell-White grabbed seven boards and Jovanni Chatham dished out five assists. For Ramapo, Moseley led the way with nine points and Ford added eight, while the team hit 11-30 (37%) in the half.

The Red Hawks came out of the locker room on fire as they opened the half on a 12-0 run to go up by 19, 48-29. The run was sparked on a free throw from Mitchell-White and capped with another three from Ramis. Ramapo responded with a run of their own as Moseley put away a shot from the charity stripe to spark the run at 15:07. Bonacum capitalized on an and-one play and then hit a three to cap the run and close the gap, 40-50 with 12:18 on the clock. With MSU ahead 56-42 on Ramis' 27th point of the game, Peterson put away a three to spark a 12-0 Roadrunner run to come within two, 54-56 with just under eight minutes to go in the game. Peterson capped the run with an and-one play. Ramis responded again with a three to jump ahead 59-56, and at 5:03 Peterson would tie the game for Ramapo at 59 with a three-point goal of his own. Ford would give Ramapo the lead (61-59) for the first time in the game with two good free throws and 4:31 on the clock. The two teams traded baskets over the next three and a half minutes until a basket from Moseley put Ramapo within one, 67-68 with under a minute to go. Out of a Ramapo time out, Moseley forced a Red Hawk turn over and after a technical on MSU, Peterson put away one shot to tie up the game at 68 and the ball in MSU's hand. A final shot from Mitchell-White hit the rim forcing overtime play. Peterson put away 14 second half points and Ramapo hit 13-29 (49%). The Red Hawks hit a combined 12-30 (40%) in the half with Ramis leading with nine points.

In the overtime period, Bonacum started the scoring with two free throws and Moseley nailed down a jumper to go ahead 72-68, but back-to-back baskets from Justin Porter and Roberson tied the game again at 72. The Roadrunners strung together a 7-0 run to go up 79-72 but MSU didn't sit back as they closed the gap to 76-79 down the stretch. The Roadrunners held on to take the game, 80-76 at the Bradley Center. Bonacum led with five points in overtime and the team hit a combined 3-6 (50%). MSU was led by Roberson and Porter each with four points.

Ramis finished the game with 30 points and Roberson recorded 13 as the team collected a 27-74 (37%) shooting performance in the loss. Roberson completed a double-double with 12 rebounds and Mitchell-White grabbed ten, while Chatham dished out six assists on the night.

The Roadrunners will play for the NJAC Championship crown on Saturday, February 24th at the Bradley Center as they face off with William Paterson University at 3pm. The winner will receive the New Jersey Athletic Conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship Tournament.