WAYNE, N.J. – Despite a surge in the second half, the William Paterson men's basketball team (6-16, 1-14 NJAC) was ultimately unable to overcome a double-digit deficit and eventually fell 89-84 to The College of New Jersey (16-6, 10-5 NJAC) in a New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) game Feb. 3 at the Sports and Recreation Center.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Pioneers trailed by seven (38-31) with 2:35 remaining in the first half before outscoring the Lions, 7-2, to go into the break down by two (40-38).
• TCNJ came out for the second half on fire offensively and knocked down seven of their first nine shots from the field to extend their advantage to 15 (57-42) with 15:12 on the clock.
• Junior Neftali Valentin scored from inside midway through the second stanza to spark a 21-10 William Paterson run that trimmed the deficit to four (71-67) with 4:29 remaining in the game. The Hackensack, N.J., native led the way during the nearly seven-minute stretch with 13 points.
• TCNJ maintained their slim lead the rest of the way en route to securing the 89-84 road conference win.

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Valentin went 9-for-16 (.563) from the floor and 6-for-7 (.857) from long range for a career-high 28 points to pair with five rebounds.
• Junior Andre Wells scored 23 points on 8-of-12 (.667) shooting and dished out a career-high 10 assists to go with five boards.
• Junior Shane Geene had a career-high 10 points and added three rebounds.
• Senior Shawn Summers Jr. finished with seven points and a season-high 12 boards along with three assists, two steals and a block.

 
UP NEXT:

• William Paterson will take on Rutgers-Newark Wednesday, Feb. 7, at 8:00 p.m. in a conference road game.