It was another mixed week for the men’s basketball team, who now sit at a respectable 6-2 on the season and are 2-1 in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) play.
Last week’s road campaign featured two NJAC matchups. The action began on Wednesday at Kean University, with the Roadrunners pulling out a 77-62 win over the cougars. The win extended Ramapo’s win streak to an impressive five games.
The Roadrunners established themselves as the dominant team in the first half by finishing on a 12-3 run to put themselves up by 12 at halftime. Ramapo was able to maintain this cushion throughout the entire second half without any real threat from Kean.
Ramapo’s standout performance came from junior guard Peter Gorman, who put up 30 points and five assists. Gorman went 9-13 from the field and shot 11-12 from the free-throw line. Supporting help came from junior center Jordan Myers, who recorded 18 points and seven rebounds, and sophomore guard Elijah Barlow with nine points and three assists.
The score sheet was fairly even for Kean, with no exceptional performances from any one player. Phil Brown Jr. led the Cougars with 12 points, three assists and six rebounds. D.J. Alicea contributed nine points. The 26 points off the bench were a bright spot for Kean, but other shortcomings such as shooting 2-15 from beyond the arc kept them from having a chance against the Roadrunners.
Ramapo shot 23-26 from the free-throw line, a stat which the coaching staff is surely happy about. The win gave the Roadrunners confidence heading into another road matchup vs. Stockton on Saturday.
Unfortunately for the Roadrunners, they weren’t able to keep up this same level of play vs. Stockton, falling 71-66 despite a hard-fought comeback. It was Gorman again who led in scoring with 20, fueled by his six 3-pointers on 50% shooting from downtown. Myers’ 11 points and nine rebounds, junior guard Justin Bladen’s 10 points and junior guard Anees Raheem’s 13 points helped to make the game a tight finish.
Ramapo led at the end of the first half, but Stockton quickly pulled away in the second. With 6:35 left in the game, the Ospreys possessed a 17 point lead, and the game looked like it would be put to bed. The Roadrunners would go on to launch a valiant late game-effort, cutting the lead to 3. Stockton’s Tayvon Gaither iced a pair of free throws with 12 seconds left, putting the game out of reach for Ramapo.
Gaither was a difference-maker for the Ospreys with 16 points and nine rebounds. Martin Anguelov booked 19 points on 50% shooting from behind the 3-point line. Ultimately, Stockton’s second half lead was just too large to overcome for the Roadrunners.
Over the next several weeks, Ramapo will have their opportunity to gain ground in the race for the NJAC crown, with games against New Jersey City University, Rowan University, Montclair State University, Rutgers-Camden University, William Paterson University, The College of New Jersey, Rutgers-Newark University, Stockton University and Kean University. The Roadrunners will also travel to Florida for a tournament where they’ll face Immaculata University and the College of St. Scholastica in late December.
jlaforg2@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of Ramapo Athletics
