Men’s Hoops Wins in OT Thriller After Loss vs. Stockton

Photo by Jenna Bengivenga

This past Saturday, the men’s basketball team lost a tough game to Stockton University by a score of 105-66.

Ramapo defeated Stockton earlier in the season 70-64, and, after a hard fought overtime victory against NJCU the game before, one would think the momentum would carry over. Instead, the Roadrunners’ motors stood idle.

“The most frustrating part about it was that we beat them the first time,” said junior guard Cory Soanes. “We just didn’t come ready to play on the road Saturday afternoon.”

Stockton ran confidently into the locker room at halftime with an 11-point lead, and that confidence only increased in the second half where they outscored the Roadrunners 58-28, winning in a landslide.

Other than senior forward and co-captain Frank Nock who scored 16 points, the regular scorers for the Roadrunners couldn’t get the rock in the hoop. Sophomore forward Chris Moseley finished with eight points while sophomore co-captain and forward Tom Bonacum dropped a subpar six points, his lowest points total this season. 

The Roadrunners wanted to have a short memory, as this was their largest defeat of the season.

“We’re hoping we can come together as a team and understand the mistakes we made on Saturday, and look to come out fired up with energy and effort Wednesday,” said sophomore guard Josh Ford. “These next three games are the biggest this season as they will decide what seed we fall in the playoffs.”

“This is my worst loss in 28 years of coaching,” said head coach Chuck McBreen. “Now, it’s a matter of – can we as a team and staff put this behind us and get properly prepared for the next opponent?”

And, indeed, they got prepared.

Despite holding a double-digit lead at one point last night, the Roadrunners took down the TCNJ Lions last night in an overtime thriller, clinching a home game in the NJAC Playoff Tournament in the process. 

The Roadrunners improved to 15-8 overall and 11-5 in the conference, while knocking down all 14 of their free throws on the evening.

Bonacum bounced back of his worst scoring game of his career by posting a career high of 30 points and grabbing 12 rebounds; it was his fifth double-double on the season.  

The Roadrunners will look to climb up in the standings when they take on Rutgers-Camden on Saturday at 3:00 p.m.

sthomps4@ramapo.edu